Blind Date
by Lucinders
Summary: AU: Dr. Owen Hunt and law associate Cristina Yang are set up on a blind date.
1. Chapter 1 Meeting each other

**A/N: AU. Dr. Owen Hunt meets law associate Cristina Yang on a blind date.**

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><p>Dr. Owen Hunt hated blind dates.<p>

Since coming back to Seattle, his social life had been in the doldrums. He had not met anyone that he would even remotely consider dating, let alone entering into a full-blown relationship. Not that he had much opportunity, the only people he met were at the hospital and he hadn't met anyone who had turned his head.

His friend, Steve Johnson, offered to set him up. Steve, who was a partner at a law firm, said he had the perfect woman for him to meet. "She's younger than us, a law associate, just two years out of law school. She's just 27. But what man complains about dating a younger woman, right?"

"Unless she is an airhead," Owen said. "When they can't carry a decent conversation, that's when you run far, far away from them."

"This one is no airhead, my friend. IQ of 150. Her name is Cristina Yang, originally from California. Went to Stanford Law. JD/MBA joint degree. Blessed with the best head of hair this side of the Mississippi. Really attractive. If I weren't happily married to Penny, I would have asked out myself. The kid is a spitfire," Steve said.

"And what did you promise the young lady to go out on a date with me?" he asked.

"Nothing. I told her you were a handsome doctor, just back from the war and you were head of trauma at Seattle Grace," he said. Owen was skeptical, so Steve added, "I also promised her a juicy case she can work on."

"That's more like it," Owen said. "I hope that the young lady turns out to be interesting. So far, all the dates I have had have been total disasters. There has been nobody I have yet wanted to ask out on a second date.

"I am 35 years old and my mom keeps asking me when I am going to bring a nice girl home. I think she is hoping that her only son produces grandchildren for her. The truth is I have reached a stage in my life where I am really looking to get into a committed relationship."

"Well, I can't promise that you're going to get a second date or a committed relationship out of this. But I do think that you will find Cristina very appealing," Steve said.

"Now, you have me really intrigued. I will call her and invite her out," Owen said. "Give me that number."

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><p>Back at his office at the hospital, Owen pulled out the paper with Steve's unmistakable chicken scrawl. He cleared his throat before he dialled the number.<p>

A crisp, business-like voice answered after three rings, "Rosenblatt, Withers & Johnson. This is Cristina Yang. How may I help you?"

"Hello, Cristina. This is Dr Owen Hunt. Did Steve Johnson mention you to me?" he asked.

"Yes, Dr. Hunt. Mr. Johnson said that I would receive a call from you? Let's cut to the chase, shall we? Where and when would you like to meet?" she asked.

He was a bit surprised by her forwardness.

"I was thinking Tulio's downtown. Is that okay with you? 8 p.m. tonight," he said.

"That's fine. I will see you there. I will be wearing red," she said. "Goodbye. See you then."

With that, Cristina hung up the phone. Just one date with Johnson's homely friend and she could get that her hands on the Warwick case. He had to be homely if Johnson was setting him up on a date.

She had been at this prestigious law firm for a little under two years and was determined to move up. Two years at this firm and she had only been working on these petty cases. She wanted bigger and better cases. Her record over the past two years had been impeccable. She had not yet worked on a losing case. She was going to be a superstar at this law firm.

She wondered what she was going to wear. She had arbitrarily said the color red because it was her favorite color. It always made her feel powerful. She headed out of the office and back to her house to get ready for her date.

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><p>At 7.45 p.m., Owen Hunt was sitting at his table at Tulio's, awaiting a woman he had never met before. He kept staring at the door, scrutinizing every woman that came into the restaurant, wearing any semblance of red.<p>

Cristina arrived exactly at 7.59 p.m. She had hoped to arrive a little earlier but the taxi got caught in a traffic jam. She entered the door and headed straight to the hostess to ask for Dr Hunt's table. Fortunately for her, she did not feel a pair of piercing blue eyes boring into her or she would have been very uncomfortable. He knew immediately that it was her and he let out a little gasp.

Steve was right about her having the best hair west of the Mississippi. It was long and curly and very dark, providing a sharp contrast to her porcelain face. The red long-sleeved knit dress hugged every curve and was quite short to show off a great pair of legs, in addition to being a little low cut to the front, exposing the smooth, flawless skin of her décolletage and neck.

Cristina had decided to go all-out sexy on this date. The chances were that she probably would never see this guy, again, so she might as well give him a little thrill.

She followed the hostess, as she led her to Dr Hunt's table. She let out a little gasp. "You have got to be kidding. This cannot be Dr. Hunt. This is no homely specimen. This gorgeous hunk of a man is Dr. Hunt. Wow," she thought. "This man was not the type that needed to be set up on a date. He could blink and there would be women lining up for him."

She started second-guessing her dress choice. "My dress is too short and cut too low and is a little too snug everywhere. Jeez, I must look desperate," she thought.

Little did she know that Owen was fully appreciating her dress choice. "My God, this girl is amazing. Why did Steve not set me up sooner?"

He stood up to greet her as the hostess showed her to the table. "Hello, Cristina. I am Dr. Owen Hunt."

"Pleased to meet you, Dr. Hunt," Cristina said, as she took his hand and shook it. He immediately went to her side of the table and pulled out her chair for her. "Thank you," she said, as she sat down.

"So what would you like to drink?" he asked, as he called over the waiter to their table.

"Some white wine would be nice," she said.

"White wine for the lady and I will have another scotch on the rocks," Owen told the waiter.

As the waiter left, Owen said, "You can stop calling me Dr. Hunt. It's Owen."

"Okay, Owen," Cristina said. "So how do you know Mr. Johnson?"

"Steve and I go way back to high school. He was a senior and I was a freshman and he took me under his wing and helped me through my first year of high school, for which I am grateful. I was a terribly geeky kid and he kept the bullies at bay. He went off to college after that but we have kept up the friendship for 20 years. He's a good friend," Owen said.

"I can hardly believe that you were a geeky guy, Owen," Cristina said, smiling.

"Oh, yes, I was. I was the quintessential 90-pound weakling and people picked on me all of the time. Steve started taking me to the gym to build up my muscles and luckily for me, I grew six inches between freshman year and sophomore year. So with my increased height and bigger muscles, I filled out in all of the right places," he said.

"Well, you certainly did," Cristina said. She was horrified that those words just came out of her mouth. She thought, "Oh, my God, what the hell is wrong with me? Did I just say that aloud? I was supposed to think that, not say it."

He smiled, especially at how flustered she looked after she said it.

"Tell me about yourself, Cristina," he asked.

"California born and bred. Went to Stanford for both undergraduate and law school. When I was little, I decided I was going to be on the Supreme Court, one day, so I needed to be in law school to be able to do that. Have been in Seattle for nearly two years, when I got the job at the law firm. I am an only child and my parents still live in LA," she said.

"Well, I am from Seattle, born and bred here. My family's house is not too far from here I am also an only child. Went to med school at Harvard, served in Iraq and came back to join Seattle Grace as the Head of Trauma. Love the adrenaline rush of trauma. It makes me feel alive," he said.

The waiter brought their drinks and took their order. For their main course, Owen ordered the wild salmon, while Cristina ordered the rib eye steak. He was surprised at her order, given her very slim build. He liked the heartiness of her appetite, given that many women he had dated, would just order some sort of salad for the night, when they probably wanted to order something much more substantial. Cristina obviously had no pretensions of that sort. He certainly liked that.

"So, now that we know all the background stuff about each other, is this the point where I ask about your favorite color and your horoscope sign?" she asked.

"Ha, ha," he grinned. "First dates can be a bitch, aren't they?"

Cristina was taken aback, "Did he just say first date? This was supposed to be one and only kind of thing," she thought. "Does this mean there is a second date?"

Owen could have just kicked himself. He could not believe that he just said first date. "Am I going to scare this girl away even before we even get started?" he thought.

She answered, "Yes, they can be. So what drew you to medicine, Owen?"

He was glad that she did not dwell too much on his first date slip. "My dad was a doctor and my mom was a nurse. I kinda grew up into it. I literally grew up in the hospital. It just seemed a natural fit to me and I could see how much good my parents did for their patients. I wanted to do the same," he said.

"Well, you're a lot more altruistic than I am, Owen. I guess that's why you served in Iraq," she answered.

She added, "You may be disappointed in me, Owen. I think that I am sometimes blinded by my own ambition. My goal is to be the best damn lawyer I can be. That is so far from being altruistic."

He replied, "Why sell yourself short? I am sure in your own way what you do helps other people."

She scoffed a little, "Don't you know who I work for? Rosenblatt, Withers and Johnson, defender of the corporate fat cats of the world. Surely, your friend, Mr. Johnson, has told you of the work that we do. We help the greedy corporations of the world when they get themselves in trouble, usually screwing some poor town out of potable drinking water or something heinous like that."

"You don't seem to be too enamored by your clientele," Owen said.

"I am not. I know exactly who they are and what they stand for. But I am still going to the best job that I possibly can for them," she said. "Is that wrong?"

"No, everyone is entitled to a good defense. The question is that what you want to be doing for the rest of your life," he asked.

"I don't know. I am only a second year law associate. I do what they tell me to do," Cristina said. Since she probably would not see this man again, she figured she might as well be honest. He found her honesty very refreshing.

"Well, you're young. You can always change your mind when you want to do something else," Owen encouraged.

"I do realize what working at my law firm can do for me. It is one of the best in the country. If I establish myself there, I would probably be set for life, possibly even make partner if I am really good," she said. "But some of these corporate clients are so sleazy, I wouldn't want to invite them into my home.

"Yet, I still defend them. On the one hand, there is my burning ambition to be the best at what I do. On the other hand, I wonder if my ambition is blinding me from choosing the side which I think would help the greater good. I feel so conflicted, sometimes," she added.

Their conversation was interrupted by the waiter bringing in their orders. Cristina was particularly pleased by her rib eye. "Yum," she said. "I am so starved." She grinned.

"Bon appetit," he said, as they both started on their meal.

"This is so good," Cristina said, between bites. He was amused to see her launch into that rib eye like it was her last meal.

They ate mostly in silence because they were both so hungry. When he suggested dessert, she asked for a large slice of strawberry cheesecake. Where she put all that food, he could not tell.

He was a little disappointed when the dinner was over and he had to take her home. He wished the night would have been longer. He drove to her house and he walked her to her door.

She turned towards him to bid him goodbye. "It has been good to meet you, Owen. I am sorry that I may not have made the best impression. But I still hope that you had a reasonably enjoyable time." She put out her hand to shake his.

He looked at her outstretched hand and then stared into her eyes, "May I kiss you instead?" he asked. She looked surprised but she nodded. She closed her eyes and waited for the light brush of his lips against her own.

If she was expecting a little smack on the lips, she was sadly mistaken, he thought. He took her face into his hands and started softly kissing those full, pink lips, waiting for her to respond to him. When she started kissing him back, he crushed those lips under his in a deep liplock. She opened her mouth to accept his tongue, as their kisses deepened and became even more urgent.

Cristina never really expected to end the night, kissing a man she barely knew on her doorstep. Yet, it was obvious that they had a very strong physical chemistry. She started to feel weak in the knees and would have collapsed if he had not been holding on to her.

When they finally broke off their kiss, he again gazed into her eyes, "Can I see you again?"

She had no words. She just nodded.

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><p><strong>AN: PLEASE REVIEW. REVIEWS ARE LOVE.**


	2. Chapter 2 Second date

"So how did it go?" Steve asked, as he and Owen worked out together at the gym.

"How did what go?" Owen replied, between lunges.

"Your date with Cristina. Was I right about her?" Steve pushed for an answer from Owen.

"Oh, Cristina. It went well. Really well, I think. I want to ask her out again," Owen said.

"Have you called her as yet?" Steve asked.

"No, I don't want to seem like overly desperate. We just had our date last night, so I am going wait till tomorrow before I call her again," Owen said. "I don't want to scare the girl away by being pushy. I am afraid I might seem needy."

"But you are needy. And desperate. And pushy," Steve said.

"Ha, ha," Owen said, sarcastically.

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><p>Cristina was at her desk, thinking about her date with Owen. She could still feel his lips on hers. The thought of it made her feel warm on the inside. She was so lost in thought that she almost did not notice that Mr. Johnson had stopped by her desk.<p>

Johnson dropped a case file on her desk. "Cristina, as promised. Here is the Warwick case."

She looked at the case file. "You don't have to give me this because I went out with Owen last night. I don't want this case to be the pay-off for going out with him. I think I got the better end of the deal."

Steve wanted to smile but he kept a straight face. Owen had certainly made an impression on the young lady, Steve thought. Things were looking up for Dr. Hunt; Johnson made a mental note to call Owen with the news.

"Cristina, I am giving you the case because I know you would do a great job with the research. Your skills are impeccable. Parsons is the lead on this case. You can report to him and tell him that I put you on the case," he said. "It has nothing to do with you going out with Dr. Hunt last night."

"Thank you, Mr. Johnson," she replied. She was gleeful as she finally had this big, fat juicy case in her hands.

She walked briskly to Parsons' office to tell him that she would be assisting him on the case. He looked out at her, "Yeah, Yang, what do you want?"

Cristina said, "I will be working with you on the Warwick case. Mr. Johnson has assigned me to you."

Parsons looked at the young law associate. She already had a reputation for being the consummate researcher. "Okay, Yang. Let's get started. I am putting you in charge of the due diligence for the acquisition. You can get some of the first years to help you out. Is Friday good for you? 9 a.m."

"Yes, sir," Cristina nodded. She was so excited as she headed off to work on the case. She corralled three first year associates to help with the research, promising them the opportunity to work on a big, juicy case. They were as eager as she was.

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><p>Meanwhile, Owen was in his office at Seattle Grace. It was a slow morning in the pit and he told the resident on his service to page him, as soon as there was an emergency. In the quiet of his office, his thoughts turned to Cristina.<p>

He was dying to call her. He weighed the pros and cons of calling her. If he called her, would it seem like he was desperate? On the other hand, things went so well last night, maybe he should strike while the iron was hot.

His thoughts were interrupted by a call from Steve. "Hey, Hunt," he said.

"Johnson, I just saw you a couple of hours ago. What's so important that you need to call me again?" Owen said.

"I have got some good news for you and you're going to want to hear this. It's about Cristina," Steve said.

"You've got my attention. I'm listening," Owen said.

"Remember when I set you up on this blind date, I offered Cristina the chance to work on a big case. Well, I gave her that case today and she said that if I was offering her the case in exchange for going out with you, then she didn't want it. She said she got the better end of the deal. How do you like that?" Steve said, triumphantly.

"Okay, so you've given me a little more incentive to call her today. Thanks, Steve," Owen said. "I'll see you tomorrow at the gym." He hung up the phone and scrolled to her number in his contacts. He stared at it, still unsure on whether to call her.

Back at her desk, Cristina wondered if Owen was going to call her today. Was it too much to expect that he would call her today? She was pretty sure that the chemistry was going to work between them, judging from that hot, hot, hot kiss he gave her.

She wondered if she should call him. "After all, this is the 21st century, why should we have to give in to societal norms about who calls whom?" she thought. She picked up her phone, scrolled to his number in her contacts and stared at it.

They both hit dial button at the same time. As they ignored the beeping of their call waiting, they each waited for the other to answer. When their calls went to voice mail, they were sorely disappointed. "Gosh, darn it," Cristina said. "Just my luck," Owen thought.

Then his pager buzzed with an emergency in the pit. He put down his phone and went running.

Cristina decided to get started on her research as it seemed like the dating gods were totally against her today.

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><p>The day passed quickly for the both of them, as each got caught up in their work. It was the end of his shift and Owen returned to his office to clear up some paperwork. He looked at his phone and looked at his missed calls. One name showed up and made him smile. She called him!<p>

He immediately dialled her number. She answered after two rings.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey yourself," she said. "I tried to call you today."

"I tried to call you today, too. It's the end of my shift, would you like to go grab something to eat?" he said, hoping he sounded casual.

She looked at the work spread out on her desk and made up her mind in an instant. "Sure," she said.

"Great," he said. "Do you want to meet at that Thai restaurant on Pine?"

"Okay, I'll see you in 45 minutes," she said, switching off her computer and packing up her research materials.

"I'll see you then," he said, as he hung up. He had a huge smile on his face.

Cristina went to the washroom and looked at herself. "Oh, God, you look like hell," she said. Her makeup looked a little tired and her hair seriously needed to see a hairbrush. She got to work to fix the damage. There was no way he was going to see her looking like this.

She brushed her teeth, freshened her make-up and brushed her hair. She spritzed on some more perfume and she felt she looked a little more presentable. She hoped he wasn't going to expect the sexpot from last night in the tight, low-cut red dress.

"You're going to meet the real me, Dr. Hunt, the everyday me," she said, looking at herself in the mirror. "I hope you like her."

Owen awaited Cristina's arrival at the Thai restaurant. He saw her step out of the cab and he broke out in a big smile. She looked as good as she did the night before, even though she was wearing a staid grey business suit. The skirt was still short enough to show off her great legs, for which he was very appreciative.

Tonight, though, he was going to play it cool. He didn't want to seem overly eager, in case she got turned off and ran away screaming.

"Cristina," he said. He wanted to kiss her but he restrained himself and rested a light peck on her cheek.

Cristina, on the other hand, was a little disappointed. "That's it?" she thought. "That little smack on the cheek. After that immensely hot kiss last night? Ah well, the night is still young."

"Hi Owen," she said and gave him a sweet smile.

"Let's go in, shall we?" he said. They were shown to a corner table.

"This is nice," Cristina said. "I've never been here before. I have always wanted to try it but I guess I never had the right company." She was paying him a compliment, which she hoped he appreciated. He just nodded. "Hmmm," Cristina thought. "What is the matter with him?"

He ordered their drinks and their entrees and asked about her day. She told him about the case that Johnson had passed to her, saying it was a major case. She said she was very excited but she couldn't talk about it because it was about an acquisition.

She asked about his day. He told her about all of the emergencies – the guy who fell off his roof, the kid who got hit by a car, the construction foreman who got stabbed with a screwdriver by one of his workers and the cook who got burned in a kitchen fire. "Wow," she said. "My day sounds positively dull compared to that." She happily grinned at him. He gave her a slight smile.

"Are you hungry?" he asked. She nodded, most emphatically and was pleased to see the waiter bring their orders.

Their conversation, for the most part, seemed rather polite for most of the evening. Owen did not want to come off as pushing her too hard. He wanted her to feel comfortable and not feel that she was being pressured into some sort of relationship. Little did he know his strategy was having the opposite effect on her.

Something was definitely wrong, she thought. He seemed a little distant. The vibe was very different between the two of them. Where was the chemistry they had yesterday, she wondered.

As he drove her home after dinner, they did so in relative silence. He walked her to her door. She turned to him and offered her hand for him to shake. "Thank you for dinner," she said.

He was confused by her outstretched hand. "I thought we had gone past that," he said.

"Um," she said. "I don't think this is going to happen between us again."

"What? Why?" he was shocked.

"I got the feeling that you don't like me very much. I thought that you did from yesterday but today, I got a different vibe. I am sorry but this is not going to work out between us," she said. "Goodbye, Owen." She turned to open her door.

"You're wrong, Cristina," Owen said, trying to salvage the situation. "I like you very much. I thought about you all day."

She turned back to look at him, "Seriously? It didn't seem like that, tonight. You've been distant, cool and exceedingly polite."

"What? I have been trying hard not to come off as being pushy. I like you very much and I didn't want to scare you away," he tried to explain.

"Really? If you like me, then show me that you like me. Talk to me, laugh at my jokes, and tease me a little. You don't have to worry about me running away. I like you. Well, I liked yesterday's you more than today's you but I still like you," she said.

"So you're not going to bolt if I come on too strong, like right now," he said.

"No," she answered. "I want you to come on strong."

"You asked for it," he said, as he took her into his arms and laid a deep kiss on her.

"Ah," Cristina thought, "that's more like it." She closed her eyes, as she responded to his kisses. This was the hot kissing she remembered from last night. There was something about him that triggered some chemical response within her, a physical need and desire to be with him. If they continued like this, she knew she would probably sleep with him.

As they broke their kiss, he looked into her eyes. "Is that what you want?"

She answered with an emphatic "Yes."

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><p><strong>AN: PLEASE LEAVE REVIEWS. IT SPURS ME ON TO CONTINUE. THANKS.**


	3. Chapter 3 Third date

"This is good work, Yang. You and your team of first years have done some brilliant work here. We're going to make the initial presentation next week to the client. I am certain that you would want to be there," Parsons said to Cristina at their Friday morning meeting.

"Thank you, sir," Cristina said, delighted. "When is it?"

"Tuesday at 10 a.m. at our client's conference room. I trust that you would be able to make it," he said.

"Of course, sir. I wouldn't miss it for the world," she said.

She turned to leave his office to give some attention to some other cases she had put aside to work on the Warwick case.

"What are you doing tonight, Yang?" Parsons said.

"Sir?" she enquired.

"Would you like to come with me to a charity event which I have to attend? Usually, I take my friend, Mary to these things but she's out of town. The Mayor and his wife are hosting the event and I have to represent the firm," Parsons said.

"I am sorry, sir but I have other plans," she said, quietly.

"Other plans? Can you break them? I really need someone to accompany me. It would look so dreadful that I don't have a date with me," he said.

"I don't think so, sir," Cristina said, feeling quite badly.

"Alright, then. I know it is short notice. Maybe you can accompany me to another function at a later date. I will give you ample notice the next time. You need to meet important people, Yang. Networking is vital to a business like ours. I am going to teach you to do this," he said.

"Yes, sir," Cristina said, hoping to make a quick exit back to her desk.

"Are you kidding me?" Terry, her colleague, caught up with her, as she walked to her desk.

"What are you talking about?" Cristina said.

"I just heard everything. You just turned down Tim Parsons to be his date at tonight's charity event. That is one of the biggest events of the year," Terry said. "Anybody who is anybody in Seattle is going to be there."

"So?" Cristina said. "Why don't you go with him?"

"He didn't ask me. He asked you. Mr. Hunky Tim Parsons – rich, suave, good-looking, penthouse apartment in the sky, seven figure salary," Terry said. "You must have something really special to do tonight."

"As a matter of fact, I do," Cristina said.

"Oh," Terry said, as the light suddenly dawned on her. "You're going out with your doctor, again. Aren't you? What date is it?"

"It's our third date," Cristina said.

"Third date! You know what that means," Terry said. "You're going to have to put out, missy."

"Why does that have to be?" Cristina said. "Who declared that the third date means that you must sleep with the guy? Where did that stupid rule come from? Is it written somewhere in the annals of dating?"

"Besides, I've only known him for five days, Terry," she added.

"Well, there must be something going on between the two of you, if you have three dates in five days," Terry said, lifting one eyebrow.

"We like each other. I like him and I am pretty certain that he likes me. But I don't think we're ready for any sort of intimacy right now," Cristina said, firmly. "We have only kissed twice and that's it."

"Don't be too sure, Cristina. Guys have a different expectation than we do," Terry said. "Where are you going for your third date?"

"Oh, he's cooking dinner for me at his apartment," Cristina said.

"Ah, ha, dinner at his apartment. Makes it easier to transition to the bedroom," Terry said, triumphantly.

Cristina began to feel a little bit uneasy about her date that night.

* * *

><p>Owen and Steve were having a midday workout at the gym, since Owen had been called into an emergency surgery earlier that day, so the guys had arranged to meet up at the gym during their lunch break.<p>

"So, third date, huh?" Steve said.

"Yup. Cooking dinner tonight at my place. I am going to leave work a little early to go home and cook," Owen said. "I hope she likes my cooking. If not, I am going to have delivery take-out on standby."

"So are you going to seal the deal tonight?" Steve asked. "It is the third date. Third date in five days, I might add."

"If by sealing the deal, you mean if I am going to sleep with her, I am not going to pressure her in sleeping with me," Owen said. "If, however, she does want to sleep over, I'm fully prepared for that occurrence. After all, someone has got to do it." He smiled.

"Yeah, right, Owen. Taking one for the team. Such a hardship sleeping with a beautiful young woman," Steve said. Owen grinned even more.

Steve continued, "In all seriousness, though, you better seal that deal, soon. There's a hotshot lawyer at my office. I think he has developed an interest in her. He mentioned to me yesterday that he thought Yang was a very attractive, intelligent girl," Steve said. "This is a man who doesn't say these things, lightly."

"Who is this guy?" Owen was curious.

"His name is Tim Parsons. He's pretty much a done deal in terms of making partner. The guy is that good. Good-looking ladies' man, very smart. He's quite a catch, as the women would say. Cristina is currently working with him on one of his cases," Steve told Owen.

"Really?" Owen said. "Hmm." He clearly needed to keep on the alert with that guy hanging around.

* * *

><p>Later that evening, Cristina was getting dressed for her date. She was in a quandary about what to wear. If she wore something too sexy, would she be sending the wrong message that she was ready to leap into bed with him? But if she wore something boring and staid, would it seem like she just didn't care?<p>

The thing is she did care and cared a really great deal, she thought.

After trying outfit after outfit, she finally decided on a short, black, strapless dress. It was sexy enough without trying too hard. She pulled out a pair of nude Louboutin heels to complete the look. She always liked how the nude heels made her legs look longer, because in reality, she wasn't all that tall. She hated when people called her petite, it made her feel small and insignificant. "Maybe I have a Napoleon complex," she chuckled to herself.

Meanwhile, Owen was finishing setting up his table. He had done most of the preparation and was already starting to grill on his patio. He was going to open with grilled shrimp and arugula salad, then grilled balsamic-dijon chicken accompanied by vegetables. He had set up the table on his patio, so they could eat outdoors – fine table linens, fresh flowers, candles and a table setting for two.

He wanted to make a good impression, after having almost blown it with her on the last date. Still, he hadn't expected that he would be in a competition to win this girl's affections. "Damn that Parsons guy," he thought. He didn't even know the guy and already, he disliked him.

The sound of his ringing doorbell interrupted his thoughts. He left his chicken on the grill and ran to answer it. When he saw her, she took his breath away. Her hair was up, revealing the smooth, flawless skin of her neck and shoulders. Her strapless black dress fit her perfectly and her legs seemed to go on forever in those nude heels.

"Hi Owen," she said. She was so gorgeous that he couldn't help himself as he pulled her into her arms and crushed her lips with his own. He hadn't seen her since their last date and he found that he missed her.

When they came up for air, Cristina said, "Well, that was a nice welcome."

"I just missed you," he said.

"I see you're grilling," she said, observing his apron.

"Yup, just follow me to the patio," he said. "I set up the table out there, so we can eat out here."

"You have a fabulous apartment," Cristina said. "Very nicely decorated."

"All done by a professional interior decorator. I just paid the bill," he said.

"Wow, what a view from up here," she said, as she stepped on to the patio. "Great view of the Space Needle. Kinda reminds me of the view that Frasier had from his apartment. You know, Frasier, the television series."

She took a seat at the table and watched him grill. It was really nice when a man cooked for you. Really kind of sexy, she thought. The man screamed sexy from every pore.

Not that she could ever return the favor. She was an absolutely horrible cook and she had developed very strong relationships with the take-out delivery guys from all of the restaurants.

"Have some grilled shrimp," he said.

"Ooh," Cristina said, as she started munching on the shrimp. "I'm so hungry."

"So how was your day?" he asked.

"Great. I finished my research on that big case I was working on. The lawyer in charge, Tim Parsons, said I did a great job and he said I could come to the initial presentation to the client next week," she said.

Owen's ears perked up when she mentioned Parsons' name.

"In fact, I would like you to know that I turned down Mr. Parsons' invitation to attend one of the biggest social events tonight – the Mayor's charity ball – so I could be here tonight," she said.

"I am so honored that you chose me, milady," he said. She smiled. He continued, "So tell me about Mr. Parsons," he asked, since he might as well as find out about the competition. One of the rules of warfare is to know thy enemy and he certainly was going to follow that one to the letter.

"He is this hotshot we have at the firm. He is a real rainmaker. Very valuable asset for the company. He has developed so many contacts and relationships that he brings in so much business. He said he's going to teach me," she said. "That's why he wanted me to go to the charity event, tonight, so I could begin to network. He said he's going to take me to the next event but he needs to let me know in advance."

Owen thought, "I am certain that is not all he wants to teach you."

Cristina said with a smile, "I told him that I had plans tonight."

"I guess I should be flattered," he said, grinning.

"Honestly, I prefer to spend tonight with you than with a whole bunch of society big shots at some charity ball," she said.

He beamed at her. "Well, our chicken and vegetables are ready. Give it a shot, baby."

Cristina thought, "Wait a minute. Did he just call me baby?"

Owen thought, "Wait a minute. Did I just call her baby?"

They both wisely chose to ignore it. They settled down to eat. One thing he loved about Cristina was that she was a girl with an appetite, not one of those girls, pretending to be dainty and demure, hiding behind a salad. The girl looked like a princess but ate like a truck driver. He could appreciate that.

"It's really good, Owen," she said, appreciatively. "Way much better than I could ever do."

"Aw, come on. Don't tell me you haven't prepared a meal for a date?" he said.

She shook her head. "You wouldn't want to sample my culinary efforts. Gastronomic disasters, I tell you."

"Well, then that is something I would just have to teach you," Owen said. "We can do that at a future date. Cook a meal together."

She liked that he saw them having future plans together. It really felt great, she thought.

"Okay," she said. "Next time, you can come over to my house and we can cook a meal together. I will provide the ingredients and you will provide the instruction. Is that a deal?"

"Agreed, Cristina. I have chocolate cake for dessert if you want any. I baked it myself," he said.

"A man of many talents," Cristina replied.

"Yup, I have quite a few. I would like to show you them some time," Owen responded.

"Was that a sexual innuendo? Showing me all of his talents," Cristina wondered in her mind.

He went to the kitchen and brought out the chocolate cake with some ice cream for her. The cake was moist, delicious and oh so chocolaty. "Chocolate must be an aphrodisiac," she thought, as she was starting to feel all warm and relaxed.

As she polished off the ice cream, he was mesmerized by the way she used her tongue to languidly lick the spoon. He suddenly wished he were a spoon.

It took everything in him to break his stare. "Gonna put on some music, let's go sit on the couch."

"Okay," she said. "What about this stuff out here?"

"I'll clean it up when you leave," he said. "Just want to spend some time with you."

They settled on his big, comfy sofa. He wrapped his arm around her, rubbing her shoulder. She leaned her head on his shoulder. He smelled so good, she thought. She just had this sudden urge to lick him. She snaked out her tongue and licked his ear in a slow, sensuous manner. He suddenly got chills. "What was this girl trying to do to me, using that same tongue I was just staring at?" he thought.

He turned his head to her and covered her mouth with his own. He pushed apart her lips with his tongue so he could taste her. Their tongues met and danced together. He deepened his kiss and he pushed her down on the couch. He lay on top of her, kissing her everywhere, her neck, her shoulders, her cleavage, her face, her mouth. He could already feel the tightening in his groin as he became aroused. She was also starting to feel a little bit moist down there. He wanted to put his hands up her dress to touch her there but he stopped himself. He didn't want to pressure her into something that she wasn't ready for.

He looked at her. "Before this goes any further, I need to ask. Do you want to stay the night?"

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><p><strong>AN: Please, leave a review. It helps me decide to continue. Reviews are love.**


	4. Chapter 4 Sleeping over

**A/N: Been getting a lot of pressure to update this. So here goes**.

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><p>His hands were starting to inch up under her dress, when he asked her the question, again. "Do you want to stay the night?" he asked, hopeful that she would agree.<p>

She knew her body was starting to betray her resolve. She had not planned to spend the night at his place. She hadn't wanted this to be the cliché third date, where they slept together. But she found it hard to ignore the wetness between her legs, her body's response to this very sexy man touching and kissing her. Her determination not to stay the night was weakening by the second as she finally whispered, "Yes."

Owen took that as his cue to pick her up and carry her from the couch to the more comfortable bed in his bedroom. When he got there, he put her down and unzipped her dress, which fell to the floor. Her breasts were bare, since she had been braless underneath her strapless dress. He bent down and took one nipple into his mouth, feeling it harden underneath the roughness of his tongue. He also gave ample attention to the other nipple. He laid her on the bed and slipped off her underwear.

He stripped off his clothes and quickly joined her on the bed. "I want you. I have wanted you from the day we met," he said, as he found her mouth with his own. She responded eagerly to his kisses, as she wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs curled around his body. She could feel his stiff shaft rubbing hard against her stomach, as they kissed. He touched her on her sex, gently rubbing her on her clit, while plunging into her with two of his fingers.

"Looks like you want me, too, babe," he said, as he felt the wetness inside of her. The thought of it made him get even harder, if that was even possible.

"Just going to make you want me more," he said, as he went down for a taste. She gasped as he penetrated her with his tongue. He rubbed her clit with his thumb, as his tongue worked its magic on her. She closed her eyes and moaned softly. This man certainly had a very talented tongue, she thought. Waves of pleasure overcame her, as her moaning became louder, a signal to Owen that he was doing a really good job.

He came back up and kissed her on the mouth. "Are you ready for me? Do you want me inside of you?" he whispered.

"Oh, God, yes, please," she croaked out.

He reached over to his bedside drawer, took out a condom and slipped it on. At least he was prepared, she thought. She could appreciate that.

He looked into her eyes as he entered her. She gasped with pleasure. It had been a while since she had made love to someone because quite frankly, she had not met anyone she thought it was worth getting naked for.

He started languorously, thrusting at a slower pace, as their bodies got adjusted to the rhythm of each other. It didn't take long for the pace to pick up, as she thrust her body to meet his own. Their mouths crashed together as their bodies slammed into each other. It was fast, it was hard, it was incredible, Cristina thought. She had clearly made the right choice to say yes to this man. She had never recalled sex being this good. Not just good, it was great.

She screamed when she finally came, digging her fingers into his back and wrapping her legs around him. His body jerked in spasms, as he exploded into her. He hadn't had sex in a while and his orgasm was prolonged and extremely enjoyable.

They looked at each other, their eyes shining. They both knew that it was great sex. Their chemistry together was totally insane. They were both up for a repeat performance, which they did three more times that night. When they finally settled down to sleep, they were both spent.

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><p>She opened her eyes and realized that she was not home. Owen's arm was thrown across her body, as well as their legs were tangled together. She remembered the sex and she felt herself blushing.<p>

She untangled herself from him and picked up his robe to cover herself, as she headed to the bathroom. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror, "Girl, you look like you have just had sex all night. What you clearly need to do is brush your teeth and take a bath. "

Her curly hair was pointing in all directions and her make up was streaked across her face. Fortunately, she found an unopened toothbrush in one of the drawers. Grateful, she burst open the pack, smeared on the toothpaste and started brushing vigorously. Seriously, she couldn't have morning breath, when you have just slept with someone for the first time.

She stepped into shower with its enormous rainforest showerhead. It was freaking marvelous, she thought. She made a mental note get one for her house. As she came out of the bathroom, she made a quick scan for her dress and underwear. She found both on the floor.

He woke up to see her pulling on her dress.

"Hey, where you're going?" he asked.

"Go back to sleep. It's early. Just heading out to go home. Can't have my neighbors seeing me make the walk of shame," she said, as she zipped up her dress.

"So, who cares? You're a grown woman; you can do the walk of shame if you want. Besides, I don't want you to go as yet. Let's go get some coffee from the Starbucks across the road," he pleaded. "Come on, stay with me for a while."

"Alright," she agreed. He jumped off from his bed and made a beeline to the bathroom. He emerged from the bathroom, 15 minutes later, toweling off his naked body. She admired how gorgeous his body was, in all of its muscled glory.

He noticed her staring at him. "Hey, you're ogling me," he said.

"And what if I am? I like what I see, so I am ogling," she said.

"You want any more of this bad boy," he asked, stroking his penis and hoping for an early morning romp.

"I'm already dressed," she argued.

"No worries, baby. Clothes can be taken off and put back on again," he said, as he came across and started eagerly kissing her face and neck.

He was amazed how just kissing her could get him aroused so fast. "You smell like me," he said.

"Well, I used your shampoo, conditioner and shower gel, so I must smell like you," she said.

He unzipped her dress and let her step out of it. "It seems like I am very easily persuaded," she said, as he slipped off her underwear.

"Just a quickie and then we'll go for coffee and breakfast sandwiches," he said, as he gently pushed her towards the bed.

"Okay, just a quickie," she agreed.

Fifteen minutes later, they emerged from a tangle of sheets and limbs. She ran off to the bathroom to freshen up and came out fully dressed. "Let's go, now. I gave you a quickie. I'm starved."

"Okay," he said, as he dragged on his boxer briefs, jeans and white t-shirt.

"Gosh, you make white t-shirts look sexy," she said.

"Thank you, my lady. Let's go," he said.

As they reached the front of his building, the doorman, Oliver, opened the door for them, with a huge smile on his face. He noted that the young lady was wearing a strapless black dress, certainly not daytime wear, an indication that she probably spent the night. "Good morning, Dr. Hunt. Good morning, miss. Really nice to see you."

"What was that all about?" Cristina asked.

"You're the first woman he has ever seen me with in the three months that I have lived in this building. He probably thought I was gay because the only person that has ever been here has been Steve. Your presence probably surprised him," he said.

"You've never had a woman over to your apartment?" she was shocked.

"Well," he said, "There hasn't been anybody that I have met since I came back to Seattle that I wanted to invite over to my apartment. You're the first and hopefully, you're going to keep coming back."

"I am so honored," she said.

As she took a seat at a corner table, he ordered their coffee and breakfast sandwiches. He brought their steaming hot coffee and sandwiches and placed them on the table.

"Here we go, Cristina," he said.

"I am so hungry," she said, as she bit into her sandwich.

"I noticed that about you," he said.

"What? You have a great appetite but I just can't figure out where all that food goes on that tiny body," he said.

"Good metabolism, plus I dance, which is pretty good exercise," she said.

"Dance? What kind of dancing?" he was curious.

"Mainly Latin. I take classes at this dance studio. You should come with me, one of these days. Latin dancing is really sexy," she told him.

"Maybe I will," he said, thinking it would be great to see her shake her assets.

"Can I ask you a question? It's about the condoms you used last night," she said.

"What about them?" he was surprised.

"If I am the first woman to ever come to your apartment, why is it that you have so many condoms? I thought you had a major stash in your bedside table. It was like a never-ending supply," she asked.

"Ha, ha. Yesterday, I went to the drug store to get some condoms, in case you wanted to stay over. I was not being presumptuous, just prepared. I bought three condoms but then I decided to get seven more, in case things worked out between us and you wanted to stay over more nights," he said. "I hope I am right and you want to keep coming back."

"How many did we use last night?" she asked.

"Four last night, one this morning," he said. "It was a very good night. Half of my stash is gone. You're going to make me run through it, faster than I expected. Not that I mind."

"I don't think you mind at all," she said, smiling. She looked at her watch. "I have to get home and out of these clothes."

"I will take you home," he said. "My car is in the basement."

They finished their breakfast and he drove her to her house and walked her to her doorstep. "See, I told you that my neighbors are judging me right now, coming home in my strapless black dress, after having a night of wild, hot sex," she said, as she pointed with her eyes to the elderly couple from across the street, shaking their heads. "At least, I don't have my shoes in my hand."

"Oh, whatever. They're probably wishing they could still do the horizontal mambo," he said.

She turned to him, "Do you want to come in?"

"I thought you would never ask. This is the third time I've been here and I have yet to see the inside of your door."

She opened her door and he was surprised by the fabulously decorated home. "If you're wondering, I just paid the decorator. A housekeeper comes by twice per week to keep it looking this fabulous. I could not do this in a million years," she answered his question without him asking.

She continued, "Make yourself at home. I am going to get some fresh clothing." She disappeared, heading to her bedroom.

He was busy, looking at her photos on her fireplace mantle, when her phone rang. He wondered if he should answer it but decided against it. Her answering machine came on, "Hi, this is Cristina. You know what you got to do." He smiled at her message.

A male voice came on. "Hey, Cristina. This is Jason. I have been trying to call you all night. Where the hell are you? I really need to talk about **us**. Call me."

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><p><strong>AN Please don't forget to review. Reviews are love.**


	5. Chapter 5 Jason

She came out to the living room, dressed in a light blue t-shirt and a very short pair of shorts. He would have spent some time admiring her legs, were it not for the troubling message he had just heard.

"Did my phone ring?" Cristina asked, noting the perturbed expression on his face.

"Yes," he said. "I think you should listen to the message."

As she pressed the button to listen to her messages, she noted that there were five new messages. She listened to the first one. It was Jason. "Cristina, I need to talk to you. Please call me." The four other messages were also from him, each of them becoming increasingly anxious.

She listened to the final message and said, "Hmmm."

Owen looked at her in surprise. Was that all she was going to say? Who the heck was Jason? He really needed to know, given that he had already started to invest his time and emotions into this new relationship. He didn't want it all to blow up in his face and have him ending up hurt.

"Is that all you're going to say? Who is Jason?" he asked, anxiously. This Jason had mentioned "us", obviously meaning him and Cristina. Owen had already begun thinking that he and Cristina were already building towards being an "us."

"Jason is someone I used to know," she said.

"I gather that from his messages. But what is he to you?" he said. "I know it has only been six days since we've met but correct me if I am wrong, but I believe that we have started a relationship and I just need to know if Jason is going to affect it."

She scrunched up her nose. "Oh…okay. Jason is my ex-boyfriend," she admitted.

"How ex is he? It seems apparent that he no longer wants to be an ex," Owen said.

"We broke up six months ago. We had a major fight in public and we broke up after that," she said.

"How long were you with him?" he asked.

"Not long. About six months," she said. "He was rather interesting in the beginning. He was fun; we had some good times."

"Then what happened?" he asked.

"Gosh, do you need to know every detail? He showed signs that he had some control issues. He always wanted to know where I was at all times. I couldn't really live like that so I was planning to break up with him when we had our fight. We were at a bar and there was this guy, who was flirting with me. I ignored the guy but Jason said I was encouraging the guy, when I really wasn't. So he got all upset and then we had this shouting match in the middle of the bar…..and then he slapped me."

"What? He hit you? Didn't someone stop it?" he was shocked.

"Yeah, a couple of guys came to my rescue. He was tossed out of there. Someone called a cab and I went home. After that, he kept trying to get back into my good graces. He kept calling me, apologizing, sending flowers and gifts.

"Then all of a sudden, it stopped. I thought he had given up. Eventually, I found out that he got an overseas contract and he had left the country. Apparently, judging from these messages, it seems that he is back in Seattle," she said. "And he still wants to get back together."

"So what are we going to do about it? I don't want him coming around you at all," he said.

"Don't worry, I'll handle it," she said. "I don't want you to get involved. It's not your problem."

He looked at her doubtfully that this petite woman was actually going to stop some possibly crazed ex-boyfriend from getting back into her life.

"Okay, I am not going to push. But the moment that you need me to help, please let me know. This is very worrying," he said.

"Don't worry, I can take care of myself," she said, trying to reassure him. Though, if she was really being truthful to herself, she didn't quite know how to handle it but she didn't want to worry Owen, either. She didn't want to drag him into the messiness of her past life. She felt that he didn't deserve to have all that trouble, when it had nothing to do with him.

Little did she know that she was having the opposite effect on Owen. He was now anxious that this ex-boyfriend could possibly hurt her. He looked at her with distressed eyes while she tried to give him what she thought was a reassuring look.

"Come on," she said, as she erased the messages from her answering machine. "Let's forget about Jason. What do you want to do today?"

While they enjoyed the rest of the day, together, both were aware of the looming presence of Jason, even though neither of them mentioned it again.

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><p>On Monday, Owen met up with Steve at the gym for their usual buddy workout time.<p>

Steve asked, "So how did your third date go?"

Owen grinned.

"That good, huh?" Steve said. "Clearly, that grin means you sealed the deal. Was it good?"

"I am a gentleman. I don't talk about my lady that way," Owen said, feeling a little weird to be talking about Cristina.

"Oh, she's your lady, now. Oh, come on, you have to spill. I am the one who fixed you up with the girl," Steve said.

"I cannot believe you, Steve. You're like one of those gossips that hang across your neighbor's fence, hoping for a juicy tidbit about someone," Owen chided his friend.

"I am not asking you for the nitty-gritty details. I am just curious. She is so feisty in work. I was wondering whether it translated into the bedroom," Steve said.

"Okay, Steve. I will give you this. Her feistiness translates into the bedroom. It was brilliant," Owen said. "I warn you that this does not get back to Cristina that I said this. If it does, I am going to kick your ass."

"I promise, Owen. My lips are sealed. I have always wanted to know. I knew there was a fierce tigress in that little body," Steve said.

"Now, that you have pulled that piece of info out of me. I need to ask you something. This is truly important. Do you know a guy called Jason, who used to be in Cristina's life?" Owen asked.

"You mean her ex-boyfriend, Jason. That guy was a real character," Steve said.

"In what way?" Owen was curious. "Tell me all that you know about him."

"Well, I could see why she would go out with him in the first place. He is quite good-looking, very intense, brooding type. He's the type of bad boy that girls tend to like. He was a telecom engineer, working with a contractor who was overhauling our communications systems at the office. When he saw Cristina in our office, he made it his mission to win her over. Apparently, he knew how to do all of the romantic stuff – the flowers, candlelit dinners, midnight boat rides. He pulled out all the stops," Steve said.

"That was the first few months of their relationship. Then it got a little intense. He apparently had some control issues and always needed to know where she was at all times. He used to call the office, demanding to know where she was. It was getting uncomfortable for everyone in the office and I knew she was going to break up with him," he continued.

"Then they had some major public argument and they broke up," Steve said. "He tried all of his romantic stuff on her again but she wasn't taking him back. So why are you asking about him?"

"It seems that he is back, trying to win her over again," Owen said. "He left a bunch of messages on her answering machine, begging her to talk to him."

"Ooh, that's not good," Steve said. "The guy is bad news, especially now that I assume she is in a new relationship. He is not going to take that lightly."

"Thanks for the information on Jason. You gave me more information that Cristina was willing to share," Owen said. "I guess I have to keep my guard up. She keeps telling me that she is going to handle it. I am not sure if she really knows what to do."

"Good luck with that," Steve said.

"Thanks," Owen said. "I think I will need it."

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><p>Cristina and Owen had plans to meet for dinner that night. She had a particularly hard day. She had found Mr. Parsons to be particularly demanding in his requests. She didn't know what the heck was wrong with him, and she seemed to be the only person that he was calling to help him. He was preparing for his presentation to the client on Tuesday and she knew it was a great learning opportunity but he seemed to be acting a little bit unreasonable. Maybe he was nervous because of how huge the merger deal was, she thought. She could give him some leeway on his behavior.<p>

She was looking forward to seeing Owen that night. She was going to go home, take a shower, get dressed and take a cab down to the restaurant. She wondered what dress she should wear that night. "Let's go all-out sexy tonight," she thought. "I need to feel sexy after the day I've had. I am getting sexy for my man." She giggled. After Jason, it was nice to have a man, again in her life.

After taking a shower, she spritzed on her favorite perfume and decided on the short, blue halter dress plus her navy Jimmy Choo heels. Satisfied that she was looking hot, she put on her coat and headed out of her door.

She had just closed the door, when her phone rang. It was Owen. "Hey babe," he said. "It's me."

"I know. How are you?" she said.

"I'm doing alright. I'm driving to the restaurant right now. Just finished up my shift at the hospital, went home, got all dressed up for you. Are you on your way now?" he said.

"Yup. I am going to take a cab down," she said.

"Do you want me to come for you? I can still swing by your place and pick you up," he said.

"That's too much driving since you're coming from a different direction. You're taking me home…" she said.

It was then she heard the familiar voice. "Cristina, why didn't you call me back?"

She was shocked as she turned around. "Jason….."

She dropped her phone and it hit the ground, shattering in pieces.

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><p><strong>AN: Please remember to leave your reviews. They always are nice to read and sometimes, they provide me with guidance and the will to continue.**


	6. Chapter 6 Domestic disturbance

**A/N: There was more gnashing of teeth as I struggle to get my writing mojo back. Writing this week has been the equivalent of pulling teeth from a dragon's mouth.**

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><p>"Jason, what are you doing here?" Cristina said, in an even tone, as she stared at the shattered pieces of her phone on the ground. "Just my luck," she thought. She hoped that Owen had heard the last piece of her conversation with Jason, so he would know that Jason was there.<p>

Jason followed her gaze to the broken phone. "I left several messages on your answering machine, asking you to call me. It has been a couple of days and I hadn't heard anything from you. So I decided to take things into my own hands and come to see you."

She looked at Jason. He was as still as handsome as ever, with glossy, dark hair and flashing dark eyes. At six foot-two, he towered over Cristina's petite frame. He was the embodiment of tall, dark and handsome. But she knew that underneath that handsome exterior, there was a side of the man that was not as pretty.

Meanwhile, Owen was shouting into his phone, "Cristina, Cristina. Speak to me!" The last thing he heard was a male voice asking Cristina why she had not called him, and then Cristina saying the name, Jason. He immediately turned his car and headed to Cristina's house. His brain was on overload, as horrible thoughts just kept storming through. Suppose Jason hurt her. Suppose she couldn't defend herself. Suppose when he got there, Jason had taken her somewhere else.

He knew that Cristina had not wanted him to get involved but she really could not have had the expectation that he would not be there for her. His mind was racing; his heart was pounding. Suppose he did not get there in time. He knew he was going faster than he should but he didn't care. He would pay all of the speeding tickets, if he could get there in time.

Back at Cristina's house, it was becoming increasingly tense and uncomfortable. Jason asked again, "Why didn't you call me back?"

She knew she had to choose her words carefully. "I didn't think that we had much to talk about. We did break up six months ago."

"You broke up with me, six months ago," he said. "I wasn't privy to that decision."

"Well, given the circumstances," she replied. "I didn't think I had a choice. There is nothing to discuss again."

"I have apologized about that over and over again," he said. "I didn't mean to hit you but you got me so mad in that bar. You've never ever given me a chance to see you after that."

"I told you that I was not flirting with that guy. But you still got mad. And then you slapped me. That was totally unforgivable," she said, defiantly. "I am not going to stand for someone hitting me." Though she was a little worried about how Jason was going to react, Cristina was still prepared to stand her ground.

"I am so sorry about that. You just drove me crazy," he said. "You still do."

"Whether I drive you crazy or not, it is still no excuse for hitting me," she said, firmly.

Jason looked at her, up and down, realizing that she was wearing all dressed up in a designer dress and heels. Dressed up on a Monday night, it was obvious she was going to meet someone. Was there a new man in Cristina's life?

"Why are you all dressed up? Is there a new man sniffing around? You look gorgeous. You used to do that for me. Now you're doing it for someone else," he said.

"I don't think that is any of your business," she answered.

"I guess that confirms that there is someone new in your life," he said. He was not expecting that. He knew she was a lovely girl and there would always be admirers. But he was not prepared for the competition, especially since he wanted to get her back into his life.

"Who is he?" he asked, as his voice raised a notch.

"Seriously, this is really none of your business," she said. He stepped forward, she stepped back.

"Is it someone I know?" he asked, his mouth becoming a thin line.

"It's nobody that you know, Jason," she said, her fear starting to build within her. She contemplated making a run for it but wearing five-inch heels would make it difficult and he would catch up with her in no time.

He stepped closer to her and grabbed her arms, tightly. "Who is he?" he snarled.

"You're hurting me," she shrieked, as his fingers pressed hard into her flesh.

"Well, answer my question and I will let go of your arm," he said.

"His name is Owen Hunt and he is a doctor," she said. He didn't let her go, in fact, he held her even more tightly.

"Oh, a doctor. Of course, it had to be something fancy like that," he said, as he pulled her closer to him, staring hard into her eyes. "Engineers aren't good enough for you anymore. You want a doctor." With that, he shook her little body hard.

At that moment, Owen arrived.

"LET HER GO!" Owen shouted, as he jumped out of his car. Cristina saw him and was so relieved. She knew that Owen would help her.

"Who's going to make me?" Jason yelled back, defiantly, as he saw Owen running up the driveway. "Who the heck are you?"

"I am the guy who's going to make you sorry that you're hurting her," Owen shouted.

Jason turned to Cristina. "Is this the guy? Is this who you got all prettied up for? This guy?" Cristina winced in pain, since he still held her tightly.

"Yes, I am the guy!" Owen yelled. "She is with me, now. So let her go and you deal with me."

"So you're her knight in shining armor, rescuing the damsel in distress?" Jason said, laughing derisively, as he gave Cristina a shake.

"Just let her go," Owen said, as he tried to temper his voice, taking it a notch lower. Maybe a calmer voice would defuse the situation. "Talk to me, instead. Look at me."

Jason spun around, moving Cristina to the front of him, his arm locked around her neck.

"You want her, don't you?" he said. "Right now, I could snap her pretty little neck. She's so tiny and fragile. That's one of the things I liked about her. So amazingly petite. Such tiny, tiny bones. Ever look at her wrists? I could wrap my fingers around it and still there be lots of room to spare. Always made me feel like I was the big, strong man around her."

Owen replied, "Well, if you're the big, strong man, then deal with me, instead. Deal with someone your own size. Not her."

He was getting increasingly alarmed but he needed to keep the situation under control, if he was going to avoid getting Cristina hurt. He could see her frightened face, tears streaming down her cheeks.

He wished he could dry her tears and tell her everything was going to be okay but he wasn't so sure at the moment. "Baby, you're going to be alright," Owen said, trying to comfort her.

"You want her as much as I do. Only one of us can have her," Jason said. "So what are we going to do about it, doctor?" He licked the side of Cristina's face because he knew that it would increase Owen's ire.

"Well, if you just let her go. We can duke it out. Isn't that what you want? Just you and me. Don't you want to prove that you're the better man here? That you're the one who deserves her. Let's do it," Owen said. "Just let her go."

Owen knew that the prospect of fighting it out would appeal to someone like Jason. Jason was the macho, aggressive type, who needed to constantly assert his superiority.

"Alright, then," Jason said and he tossed Cristina aside on the lawn.

"Go in the house, Cristina," Owen said. She got up and ran inside the house. As soon as she got in, she ran to her phone and immediately dialed 911.

"Please send somebody. My boyfriend and my ex-boyfriend are fighting it out on my lawn. I am afraid somebody is going to get hurt really badly," she said, as she gave the 911 operator, her name and address. "Hurry."

"Stay on the line, Miss Yang, until the police officers get to your house," the operator advised. Cristina ran to the window with the phone in her hand to see what was going on. Her nosy neighbors were also out on the street, looking at the commotion. The two men were slugging it out on her lawn. Both were certainly getting their hits in, as they were each becoming battering and bruised. With a massive left hook, Owen finally got his last shot in and hit Jason square on the jaw. Jason reeled backwards and hit the lawn.

At that point, the police arrived. "Hold it there, sir," an officer told Owen. Cristina ran out of the house and hugged Owen. "I am Cristina Yang and I made the 911 call. This is my boyfriend, Owen Hunt and the guy lying on my lawn is my ex-boyfriend, Jason Douglas."

"He came here and started hurting me. My boyfriend came to stop it," she told the officer.

"I guess we should call an ambulance for that guy," the officer said. He made the call via his radio.

"Are you alright, Owen?" Cristina asked, noting the bruising on his face and his hands.

"I am okay," Owen said. "I need to get a scan on my hand to make sure everything is alright."

"We'll go down to the hospital," she said. "I'll ask the police officer if we can give our statement down there." She got the approval of the officer, who had to wait for the ambulance for Jason.

"I will drive your car," she said. Owen got in the passenger seat, his hand still smarting from the left hook. He looked at his face in the rearview mirror. His face was going to be black and blue. He looked at Cristina, as she drove the car. There were deep bruises on both her arms from where Jason had grabbed her and a reddish mark at the base of her throat from when he held his arm across it.

She gave him a slight glance. "I'm sorry, Owen, for dragging you into this."

He said, "Don't worry about it, Cristina. I would do it all over again. I would fight Jason a thousand times for you. I just needed to make sure that you were okay."

He took her hand into his and squeezed it.

"Thank you," she said, as a single tear rolled down her cheek.

At the hospital, they took scans of Owen's hand to find that nothing was broken. He was relieved because a surgeon's hand was his most important tool. A couple of his colleagues cracked a few jokes at his expense about his bruised and battered face. He laughed it off.

They gave their statements to the police, who had arrived with the ambulance, carrying Jason. Jason, they found out, had a broken jaw, bruised ribs and a concussion. The police informed them that Jason would be charged.

As they drove back to her house, Owen walked her to her door. She turned around and looked at him, "Stay with me," she said. He nodded. She didn't want to be alone.

As they lay in her bed that night, she held on to him, thankful that he had been there to save her. He too was grateful that she was still there with him. He hugged her tiny body closer to him. They were both glad that they still had each other.

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><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. They are very much appreciated.**


	7. Chapter 7 His protege

**A/N: So it almost seems like I forgot about this story. Yeah, I did, kinda. I was a little stuck about what to do with it. But I got a little inspiration and hopefully, this will roll out more smoothly in the future.**

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><p>It had now been four months since Jason had made his entrance into and exit from their lives. As their bruises healed and faded, they tried to put the specter of Jason behind them. Cristina still sometimes had nightmares and she would wake up, screaming.<p>

Owen would hold her tight and tell her everything was okay. Because of her nightmares, they started spending a lot of their nights together, either at her house or his apartment. They were spending almost every night, together, except for the nights he was on-call and had to stay at the hospital. Soon enough the nightmares became fewer and less frequent as they returned to their normal lives.

Normal stuff, normal couple stuff – like getting keyed. Owen had dropped off Cristina to her workplace, when he reached into his pocket and handed her a key.

"What's this for?" she asked, taking the key.

"It's the key to my apartment," he said.

"You're keying me? Really?" she said, gingerly holding the key like if it had suddenly got too hot.

"Well, we spend almost every night, together, so it just makes sense that you have a key to my apartment," he said.

"Oh, okay," she said, as she put the key into her purse. "See you later."

"See ya, babe," he said, as he got on his way to the hospital.

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><p>She stepped into her office. "What's that look on your face?" Terry asked.<p>

"I have been keyed," Cristina said.

"Ooh, nice. That means the guy is all in. He is giving you his key. That is a huge deal for a guy," she said.

"I didn't give him my key," Cristina said. "I don't know if I want to."

"Well, what's holding you back? You obviously like the guy; you spend almost every night together. That seems like the kind of guy you would want to give your key," Terry said.

"Well, what if I am doing naked yoga in my living room and he walks in?" Cristina said. "That would be embarrassing."

"You've been with a guy a couple of months, already. I am pretty sure he has already seen you naked," Terry said.

"He saw me naked the first week. It's not the naked part that worries me, it's when I am contorting my body in all sorts of weird positions, while I am naked," Cristina said.

Terry laughed. "I think the sight of you naked, contorted in some strange position, will probably give him a thrill he hadn't expected. Any man, who says he doesn't appreciate a flexible girl, is lying through his teeth."

She continued, "The only thing that would get him upset is if he catches you with some secret lover. You haven't one of those, do you?"

"No, of course not," Cristina protested. "How can I even have a secret lover when I am with Owen almost every night? I don't have the time or the opportunity."

"Well then, if you have got nothing to hide, then there is not one thing holding you back from giving that man your house key," Terry said.

They were then interrupted by the ringing of the office phone. Cristina looked at the caller ID. It was Parsons.

"Oh, God, why does he always want something the first thing in the morning?" Cristina grumbled. Parsons had made Cristina his go-to associate, whenever he needed anything done. She was so efficient and usually did everything in record time that he had found her indispensable. All of the other law associates, Parsons felt, paled in comparison to her.

Cristina found him to be a demanding taskmaster but he did have the coolest cases in the office. For that, she was grateful but sometimes, she needed a break from his difficult ways.

She answered the phone, "Good morning, sir. How are you today?

"You want me to come to your office? Okay. I will be right there."

She sighed, picked up her folder and plastered a fake smile on her face. "I'm headed to the dragon's lair." Terry laughed.

Cristina walked down the corridor to Parsons' office. She knocked on his open door.

"Ah, yes, Yang," Parsons said. She sat down on a chair, opened her folder and was ready to take some notes for whatever research he had planned for her.

"No, no, close that folder. It is not that kind of meeting," he said. Her eyebrows shot up. Parsons never had any other kind of meeting, other than a work meeting.

"Can you please shut that door?" he asked. Cristina got up from her chair and did what she was told.

"Remember a couple of months ago, we had a discussion about you starting to network with the big players in this town. You're from California, so you don't really have a base from which you can draw on. So, since you are my protégé, I want to be your teacher in this aspect. You have impeccable skills. I want you to become a great attorney but becoming a great attorney means you have to get the good cases to make your reputation in the courtroom.

"However, to get the good cases, you must get to know people and they must get to know your name," he said.

Cristina was astounded. When did she become Parsons' protégé? Clearly, that was a unilateral decision made by Parsons. If she had a choice, she would have preferred to be Steve Johnson's protégé because he seemed to be more of an easy-going guy, not a hard-ass like Tim Parsons.

"Okay, Mr. Parsons," she said. What else could she say? The hotshot of the office had just declared that she was his protégé. Other attorneys would kill for that privilege but having worked closely with him for the past few months, it was not as great as other people thought. Sure, he was a great attorney and you could learn a lot but he was not easy to get along with. He was a man who appreciated results, and only results.

"Now that we have that established," Parsons said. "I would like you to be my companion at a charity function tonight at the Four Seasons. I know it is short notice but you have to secure yourself an appropriate dress. I have an entertainment allowance for these functions when I represent the firm and I would reimburse you for whatever dress you need to purchase. Just bring me the bill and I will have Accounts make a check out for you from my entertainment account."

Cristina was taken aback. "Uh…."

"No need to thank me," he said. "Just go along and take two hours off and go get a dress. It is a strictly black-tie event so that means you will have to get an evening gown. You can take one of your friends with you to help you decide."

She walked out of his office, a little dumbstruck and walked back to the office she shared with Terri.

"What happened?" Terry asked. "You look like you've been hit with the worst news possible."

"Well, kinda," Cristina said. "Parsons just told me that I was now his protégé and he was going to make me into a great attorney. I didn't know that he wanted to be my mentor."

"Wow, he must be impressed with you. He is very hard to please. I have seen a lot of law associates come out of his office, looking defeated," Terry said. "He made me feel like a wuss once but I forgave him because he is that good-looking."

"I don't even notice his good looks. But seriously, he's not that hard to figure out," Cristina said. "He just wants his work done, efficiently and thoroughly. Just interested in results and nothing more."

"Well, what else? That can't be all," Terry said.

"He says he is taking me to a charity function at the Four Seasons tonight. He says I need to go get an evening gown and he would pay for it from his entertainment account," she said. "He said I should take two hours off and go get that dress now."

"Whoohoo," Terry said. "Permission to go shopping during work hours. Now that is something special."

"Well, he said I could take a friend with me. You want to come?" Cristina asked, picking up her handbag. "As Robin Sparkles says, let's go to the mall, today."

Terry grabbed her handbag and they headed out on a shopping spree and came back with what they thought was an appropriate dress. It was aubergine, strapless and totally elegant.

Cristina went to Parsons' office and presented him with the bill. It was a hefty bill but he did not even blink. He signed off on it and told her to drop it off in Accounts.

Cristina walked away with a smile. A rather ingenious way of getting the firm to pay for your wardrobe, she smirked.

She had to leave the office early that evening to get ready for the function. She took a shower and got busy working on her hair and make-up. She decided to wear her hair in an upswept do. She was putting the finishing touches to her face, when she got a call. It was Owen.

"Hey," he said. "I called your office and they said you left a little early today. I was coming by to pick you up."

"Oh," she said. "I am going to a charity function tonight with one of the other lawyers at the firm. We are representing the firm. So I had to get home quickly to change and get ready for the function. Sorry I forgot to call you and tell you about it."

"Okay, I might as well stay at the hospital, then. Call me when you get home," he said.

"No problem," she said, as she put on her lipstick. "I will call you later."

Parsons picked up Cristina at her house. When he saw her, he was awestruck at how beautiful she looked and told her so. She thanked him and said he looked quite handsome himself.

At the function, it was just a whirl of faces for Cristina, as Parsons introduced her to many, many people. She could not even remember half their names. There were a lot of cameras and she and Parsons had their photograph taken many times.

Cristina was caught up in the excitement of the night. She had met so many important people. By 2 a.m., it was over and Parsons was driving her back to her house.

"So what do you think, Yang? How was it?" he asked.

"It was very interesting. I met so many CEOs and politicians and sports personalities. Movers and shakers in Seattle. It was totally amazing," Cristina said. "Thank you for taking me."

"We are going to go to quite a few more in the future," he told her, as he dropped her off at her house.

As she got in and changed out of her clothes, she thought it was maybe too late to call Owen. He must be tired and asleep at the hospital, she thought. She was right. Owen had already fallen asleep in an on-call room.

Cristina crawled into her bed. It was so good to be home, she thought, as she hugged her pillow. She missed Owen's warm body next to her.

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><p>The next morning, Owen woke up from his sleep. His back ached as it always did whenever he spent the night at the hospital. He stretched out and groaned. Those on-call beds really made him miss his king-size bed at home and Cristina curled up under his arm.<p>

He was going to brush his teeth and get some coffee. His phone buzzed. It was Steve.

"Have you seen it?" Steve asked.

"Seen what?" Owen asked.

"Just get a morning paper and we'll talk about it," Steve said. Owen found Steve was being very mysterious.

He found a paper at the nurses' station.

"Go to the social section," Steve said. "It cannot be missed." Owen flipped through the paper until he got to that section. It certainly could not be missed. There was a large picture of Cristina and a handsome man at a social function. Cristina looked gorgeous with her hair up and in a strapless dress.

He read the photo caption, "Hotshot lawyer Tim Parsons of the prestigious firm, Rosenblatt, Withers & Johnson, with his lovely date Cristina Yang at last night's Rockcraft Charity Ball at the Four Seasons."

"So what was that about?" Owen asked. "What is she doing out with him?"

Steve answered, "He is so well-connected that he is usually the guy we send to these things. He told me yesterday that he was going to take one of the law associates with him as his date to the charity ball. I didn't know he was talking about her. If I had known, I would have intervened on your behalf."

"Alright, Steve, thanks. I am going to speak to Cristina about it," he said.

"Don't get mad, Owen. It's not her fault. I am pretty sure he probably made her go. The man is a shark," Steve said.

Owen hung up, feeling rather uneasy. Why didn't she tell him that Parsons was the lawyer she was going to the event with? He remembered Steve's earlier warnings about Parsons having his eye on Cristina.

He freshened up, grabbed a coffee from the cart outside of the hospital, got into his truck and headed over to Cristina's house.

He got out of his car and knocked impatiently on her door. "Please be here, Cristina," he muttered. "Don't let me down." He banged on the door, again.

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><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. I appreciate your comments**.


	8. Chapter 8 Meeting the enemy

Cristina reluctantly opened her eyes. There was someone banging on her front door. "Good grief, who could be knocking at this hour?" She crawled out of her bed and unsteadily stood up. She slowly made her way to her front door with her eyes closed, while the person continued to knock.

"Hold your horses, whoever you are," she said. She took a peek through the peephole. It was Owen. She wondered what was up with him that he was so impatient.

She opened the door. Owen was never more relieved to see her standing in front of him, although she looked very sleepy and her hair was in a bit of disarray. She was here and not in Parsons' bed as he had dreaded.

Steve had warned him that Parsons was a shark and his rather vivid imagination had conjured up enough scenarios, all of them with Cristina ending up in Parsons' arms. He felt comforted by the sight of her.

"Hey, Owen, what are you doing here?" she asked, yawning.

He stepped inside and took her into his arms, holding her tightly against him. "I missed you last night," he said. "I slept in an on-call room and my back is hurting me now."

"Oh, okay, do you want to join me in bed for a bit? I have only had four hours sleep and I am still feeling tired," she said, as she meandered her way back to her bedroom.

He did as he was told, as he followed into her bedroom and got in next to her. She wriggled her body back against his and put his arm around her, using his body to cocoon herself. He had to smile at how she was using his body to make herself comfortable.

"Are you snug and comfy?" he asked.

"Yup, I am all cosy and secure," she said. He buried his face in her hair and breathed in the scent of her shampoo.

Though he tried to stop himself from asking, he desperately needed to know to ease the agitated thoughts, still flooding his brain. "Can you tell me what you did last night?"

"I went to this charity function with Mr. Parsons at the Four Seasons. It was pretty amazing. I got to meet a lot of people – people I would not normally meet. Mr. Parsons says it is important for my career that I go out there and start to establish connections," she said.

She continued, "The best thing is that since we were representing the firm, they bought my dress. Well, I don't have an allowance for that, so Mr. Parsons took it out of his entertainment account. Whoohoo!"

"So you enjoyed yourself?" he asked.

"Well, yeah," she said. "It was so much fun. I got to meet so many different people. I even got to meet that cutie pie, Olympic speed skater. Mr. Parsons said he was going to take me on a couple more parties in the future."

"Is he?" Owen said, trying to keep his voice even. That was just getting him incensed, even though he did not want to show it.

"He told me I was now his protégé and he was going to make sure that my career gets a firm footing," she said. "So it was important for me to start networking to help my career."

"So Mr Parsons is helping you?" he asked.

"I guess. He really is the most dynamic lawyer at the firm. He gets a lot of the major cases because he is so good. Lots of clients ask for him, personally, to take their cases. I have been helping him with a lot of cases, doing research and he has started taking me to court," she said. "The other law associates are so jealous because I get access to all his cool cases.

"But they only know half the story. He is kind of difficult to work with. He is very demanding, wants things done a certain way. He keeps asking for me and only me. So that doesn't make it easy. Every morning, he calls me into his office and we go through all the stuff he wants me to do for the day and for the week."

Owen shook his head. The man was insinuating himself into every aspect of her life, under the guise of work, he thought. Not only was he dominating her work assignments, but also trying to dazzle her by taking her to all of these fancy balls, under the pretense that it was all work-related.

But he had to admit that Parsons, given the type of headline-making cases that he got, would be a great teacher for Cristina. He didn't want to crush her spirits by telling her that maybe, Parsons had a different agenda, other than being her mentor. He was going to let it go for now but not without a word of warning.

"Cristina, if you ever have any sort of problems with Parsons, you can go to Steve at any time. Just know that," he said. "He will help you."

"Okay," she said, snuggling more into him, as she wriggled her butt against his groin.

"If you keep doing that, there are parts of me that are already responding and I don't know if I can stop it," he said.

"That is exactly why I am doing it," she said. "Take a hint, Dr. Hunt." She unzipped his jeans and started stroking him.

"Hint taken," he said, as he took off his t-shirt and took off his jeans and briefs. He unbuttoned her nightshirt and slipped off her lacy white underwear, before going down on her. As his talented tongue penetrated her, Cristina gasped. The man certainly weaved some magic there with that tongue, as he made her come over and over again.

As he came up, he looked into her eyes. "Am I the only man for you?" he asked. "Do you want me? Do you want to feel me inside of you"

"That goes without saying, Owen but if I must say it. Yes on all three counts!" she said, as she pulled his face in for a kiss. "Yes, yes, yes."

As he entered her, she let out a contented sigh and a huge smile. "You know I was dreaming about you and your fabulous cock and you just showed up. How good was that?'

"I know when I am needed," he said, as he plunged himself deeper into her. Their sex was loud, long and satisfying.

When he climaxed, it was a release of tension that had built up inside of him. He was able to let go of his jealousy but not all of his anxiety.

The sex had comforted him but it still had not made him fully at ease with the situation. He looked down at her, cuddling against him. He kissed her on the top of her head.

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><p>Monday morning found Owen and Steve at their usual meeting place – the gym. They were, of course, discussing the ParsonsCristina situation.

"I am just not happy about it," Owen told Steve, as they ran next to each other on the treadmills. "It's not like I can do anything about it. Especially when I know that he has another reason for insisting that he be her mentor."

Steve said, "In terms of mentorship, she probably would not be able to do better than Parsons. He can teach her quite a lot. But he is not to be trusted. I have seen him do things in a courtroom, where he looks to be leading a witness on one path, and then suddenly turn into another direction. People don't like to go up against him. He has a fearsome reputation."

"I recognize what he could do for her," Owen said. "I also know what you tell me what he is capable of, and it worries me. For now, I am not butting in but I am going to keep a close eye on the situation."

"You know what you can do is maybe meet your enemy," Steve said. "Why don't you show up lunch time and take your girlfriend out to lunch. He will be around and you can introduce yourself. Mark your territory, kind of thing. Let him know that you actually exist."

"You know that is a good idea. I would like to meet Tim Parsons and look him straight in the eye," Owen said.

"Okay, then. Show up around 11.45," Steve said. "I will alert the receptionist to let you in."

"I'll be there," Owen said, as he went off to lift some weights.

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><p>At quarter to 12, Owen found himself at the offices of Rosenblatt, Withers &amp; Johnson. The receptionist let him in and told him where he could find Cristina. He knocked on the door of the office, which she and Terry shared. Cristina was not there but the other woman answered.<p>

"Good day, sir," Terry said. "May I help you?"

"Yes," Owen said, looking around. "I am looking for Cristina Yang. I am Owen Hunt."

So this is Cristina's boyfriend, Owen, Terry thought, Cristina was a lucky girl.

"She is in with Mr. Parsons right now. She should be back in a short while. Have a seat," she said.

"Thank you," Owen said. He could feel the woman's eyes boring into him.

Soon enough, he heard Cristina's voice, coming down the corridor. She was conversing with someone. That someone had a strong, very precise voice. He knew it could only be one person – Tim Parsons.

As she turned into her office, she was surprised to see him. "Hey, what are you doing here?"

"I thought I would come and take my favorite girl to lunch," he said. Parsons, who had followed Cristina into her office, gave Owen a head-to-toe inspection.

"Okay, that is very nice of you," she said. "Oh, my manners. Mr. Parsons, this is my boyfriend, Dr. Owen Hunt."

For the briefest moment, Owen could see the shock on Parsons' face but that was quickly covered up by a fake smile.

"Dr. Hunt. A medical doctor?" Parsons said, putting out his hand to shake.

Owen took the man`s outstretched hand and gave it a very firm handshake. "Yes," he said. "I am head of trauma at Seattle Grace Mercy West."

"So, if I am ever in a car accident, you could possibly be the one treating me in the ER," Parsons said.

"Possibly," Owen said. "But there are other doctors on duty, most times."

"Well, then, Cristina, I leave you to your _boyfriend._ Just remember I need that research done by five, this afternoon," Parsons said, as he made his way out of her office. He pursed his lips into a thin line.

Parsons never knew that she had a boyfriend. Hmm, he thought, this was going to be a little more difficult than he had originally thought.

"Still," he said, quietly to himself. "I am a winner. I have always been a winner. I don't know how to lose. And I am not losing this."

Back in her office, Cristina contemplated whether she had to stay in office to do Parsons' assignment. "Oh, screw it," she said, looking at her handsome boyfriend. "Let's go have some lunch."

She took up her handbag and dug into it.

"I have something for you," she said and handed him the key to her house. "So you won't have to bang on my door and wake me up."

He took it and put it in his pocket and gave her a huge smile. How do you like that, he wished he could say to Parsons, now.

He held out his hand for her to hold, which she did, intertwining her fingers with his.

Parsons looked out from his office and observed the two of them, leaving the office. He was not a happy man at the moment but he was a man, who appreciated a challenge. He was up for this one.

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><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. Thank you for all your comments. I do appreciate every one of them.**


	9. Chapter 9 The new case

She went to Mr. Parsons' office for her usual Monday morning meeting. She just had a terrific weekend with Owen, doing a wine tour of Napa, and was ready to face the new week with renewed vigor.

"Good morning, Mr. Parsons," Cristina said, as she sat down.

"Morning, Yang. How are you today? And that boyfriend of yours, the doctor guy?" Parsons said.

"He is doing well. He is at work, right now," she said, not really wanting to discuss her personal life with her boss.

"He must work odd hours as an ER trauma doctor," he said.

"Well, yes, sometimes, he works at night," Cristina said, wondering why Parsons was continuing on this line of questioning.

"It must get lonely when he works the graveyard shift," Parsons said, writing in his notes as he spoke.

"Sometimes," she said. "But I am used to it." She tried to change the subject. "So what case do we have this week?"

"Ah, well, yes. We do have an interesting case. I am sure you have read about Chartwell Industries' troubles in the newspaper. Well, they are being sued by this little town, Burristown, that's claiming that the company is releasing toxic fumes into the air and poisoning them and their animals. Livestock has been getting sick, domestic animals are getting ill, as well as a large number of the people in the town have developed some strange lung ailments," Parsons said. "Millions of dollars are at stake, possibly hundreds of millions."

"So we're working for Chartwell?" Cristina asked.

"Strangely, no. We're working for Burristown. We're going up against Fletcher, Stone and Morgan, those bastards from across town," Parsons said.

"Really? That is surprising. Why are we doing this? We're usually for the big guys, not the little guys," Cristina answered in a shocked tone.

"Well, the thing is I am from Burristown until we moved away when I was 12. I got a couple of aunts and uncles and about a dozen cousins still living there. My cousin, Minnie, is one of the sick people. She got lung cancer," he said, sighing.

"I am sorry to hear that, sir," she said.

"Well, I approached the partners about taking this case because it is close to my heart. They agreed that I could pursue it. We're only getting paid if we win," Parsons said. "And I am determined to win, not only for our firm, but also for the town that holds many great childhood memories for me."

"I would be honored to help you on this case," Cristina said. "What can I do to help?"

"Well, we can start by researching Chartwell's operations across the country to see if they have made any major environmental violations or whether they have been involved in any class action suits against them. You do know that this will require you working very late with me and we will be making trips to Burristown together to interview the townsfolk there," he said.

"I have no problems with that, sir. I am actually looking forward to being part of this case. I want to win one for the little guys," Cristina said, excitedly.

"So you're excited, Yang!" he said.

"Yes, sir!" she said. "I am ready to start."

"Okay, today, I need you to do the research on the company. You can use some of the other second and first year law associates to help you. Tomorrow and the next day, we are going down to Burristown to interview all of our clients, especially those who have been most affected by the pollution. You do recognize that we will be staying there overnight, so please make appropriate arrangements," he said.

She nodded.

"Well, you can go ahead and start doing your research. It is probably going to be a late night, today. We will go, maybe 10 or 11 tonight. I would like to get as much research done as possible, today. Is that okay with you? Don't worry, I will order dinner for everyone and I will get a car to take you home, tonight," he said.

Cristina got up and left the office. What she didn't see was the huge grin on Parsons' face, as she left. It didn't matter, anyway, Cristina was already thinking of the case. Parsons knew exactly what would appeal to the young law associate. In their previous cases that they had worked together, she had always shown signs of being sympathetic with the other side, not the big corporation that they always represented.

She headed back to her office; the wheels were already turning in her head. She certainly could get Terry to help her, as well as Shaw, Timmons and Farouq.

Her eyes were shining when she stepped back into her office. "Terry, great news," she said. "We're going to work on that case Burristown against Chartwell Industries. I would like you to help me."

"So we're working for Chartwell?" Terry asked.

"No! Burristown!" Cristina screamed.

"You're kidding me, Yang. Us working for Burristown? Did hell freeze over?" Terry said. "We've always worked for the fat cats, not the little people."

"Well, apparently, the firm is doing it for Parsons. It seems he is originally from Burristown and his family still lives there. His cousin, Minnie, has lung cancer from the pollution," Cristina said.

"Ooh," Terry said. "That totally sucks. I am glad we're taking this case, then."

"Me, too," Cristina said. "We have to win so these people can get justice. Plus we are only getting paid if we win."

"Well, okay, I am game. Let's get a team together and let's get started," Terry said.

* * *

><p>It was late at night. Most of the team had already left for the night, except for Cristina and Parsons. Her phone buzzed, incessantly. She looked at the caller ID. It was Owen.<p>

She answered, "Hey, baby."

He said, "When are you coming home?"

"I am still trying to finish up here," she said.

"Are you hungry?" he asked. "I can bring something for you."

"Aw, don't worry about that. Mr. Parsons and I had dinner about an hour ago. He ordered some Italian. It was good, so don't worry about that," she said.

"He did, did he?" Owen said, hoping that he wasn't sounding too sarcastic.

"Yeah, this case is really amazing, Owen. I wish I could talk to you about it. But you know confidentiality and all that," Cristina said.

"I know. I am glad you are excited about this case. I just want you to come home as soon as possible. I miss you," he said. "I'll massage your feet."

"I miss you, too. Thank you for wanting to massage my feet. I hope you are willing to massage other things, too. I will just finish off, here," she said, starting to pack away all of her papers. They both laughed, before she hung up.

As she was turning off her computer, she heard Parsons call for her. "Jeez, what does he want now? I am tired, I want to go home," she muttered under her breath. "I have a hot, sexy boyfriend, waiting for me and willing to massage my feet."

She hurried down the corridor to Parsons' office.

"So, Yang, have you done all of the research that I asked for?" he said, still looking as alert as ever.

"Yes," Cristina said. "I sent it to you in an email."

"Ah, yes. There it is," he said. "I guess you are heading out now. I will call the car service for you." He dialed for the car service.

"Thank you, sir. I am happy that I am able to help the people of Burristown and especially your family," she said.

"Yes, thank you, Yang. Remember we're heading out to Burristown, tomorrow. I will drive. It has been a long time since I have been there, I am ashamed to say. I might get lost," he said. "Remember to bring your overnight case in the morning. We will drive back Wednesday evening."

"Aw, sir. We can always use the GPS," Cristina said, laughing.

The phone rang. Parsons answered, "Thank you, Sean." Hanging up, he said, "Cristina, your car is here. Before you go, I know it has been a long day but are you enjoying this case?"

"Yes," Cristina answered. "Very much so."

"Okay, good. Then I will see you in the morning. We are going to leave as early as we can. We have a long drive ahead," he said.

"I will be ready," she said, as she left. She ran down the corridor and grabbed her handbag and laptop from her desk.

When she got home, Owen was waiting for her in the living room. He was already in his pjs. She gave him a big kiss, as she joined him on the couch. She lay down on the couch as he massaged her feet.

"Thank you, Owen. You are such a wonderful boyfriend," she said, as she snuggled down into the couch. "You have great hands."

"Is this all you want me for? To massage your feet? I know I have great hands. I am a surgeon," he said.

"You are good at other things, too," she said.

"Like? Tell me, woman," he said.

"You are a good cook, you keep my house better than I can, you are a terrific surgeon and you are an amazing and talented lover," she said, sighing at how good her feet felt.

"Thank you," he said. "Are you going to work late tomorrow, too?"

"Um, well, I won't be coming home, tomorrow," she said. She had dreaded telling Owen this particular piece of news.

"What do you mean by that?" he said, as he stopped massaging her feet.

"Mr. Parsons and I will be going out of the city to visit some clients. It is quite far away and we are going to spend two days interviewing the clients. It is a class action suit and there are a lot of people to interview," she said, quietly. She knew Owen was going to hate this.

"Just you and Parsons together for two days?" he asked, his mouth drawing into a thin line.

"Yes," she said in the same quiet tone. She had already recognized that there was something about Parsons that Owen did not like.

Owen removed her feet from his lap. He folded his arms. He didn't say anything for a couple of minutes.

"Alright, then. I am going to bed," he said. Owen was caught between a rock and a hard place. On the one hand, he knew he had a reason not to trust Parsons but he also did not want to kill Cristina's bubble about a case she was obviously very excited to work on. He got up and went to the bedroom.

Cristina sat alone on the couch, not knowing how to feel. She could sense that Owen seemed uneasy about the whole situation but this was such an amazing case that she could ill afford to let it pass her by. She sighed, loudly.

She went into the bedroom, took a shower, brushed her teeth and climbed into the bed, next to Owen.

He was turned away from her. She spooned him and put her arm around him, hoping that he would respond. He took her hand and kissed it. She felt a little bit better before they both fell asleep.

The next morning, as he got ready for work, he watched her pack her overnight bag. He felt helpless. There seemed nothing he could do about it.

He dropped her off to work, as he did every morning. She kissed him goodbye and said she would see him the next evening. He watched her walk into the building. He knew he had to trust her. The problem was that he didn't trust Parsons.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. I do appreciate reading each and every one. Thank you for your comments.**


	10. Chapter 10 A trip out of town

Cristina stepped into her office building, only to be greeted by Parsons coming out of the elevator.

"Oh, good, you're here, Yang. I came down to wait for you," he said. "No need to go upstairs. We are heading out to Burristown, now. Do you have everything that you need?"

"I guess. Where's your car?" she asked.

"Downstairs in basement parking. Let's just go down now," he said. They entered into the elevator and Parsons pressed the button for basement parking.

"I trust that you told your boyfriend that you would not be back this evening," he said.

"Yes, I told him," Cristina said, not really wanting to talk about it. She knew Owen was not happy because he said very little that morning, when he dropped her off.

"And he's fine with it?" Parsons pressed.

"Yes, he is," Cristina lied to get Parsons off his line of questioning.

"Alright, then, we can look forward to two days of productive interviews," he said. Cristina nodded.

His car was close to the elevator. It was a silver Mercedes Benz CLS550 coupe. It was a beautiful car and Cristina had suspected he would have a car such as this. He put Cristina's luggage into the trunk, which already contained his overnight case. They got into the car while he set the GPS for the hotel they were going to stay at in Burristown.

He started the car and they were on their way. For the first hour of the two-hour drive, Cristina spoke excitedly about the case but there was only so much talk they could do and for the second hour, Cristina fell asleep. Her head dropped forward. He smiled as he watched her sleep. He gently pushed her head back against her headrest and brushed the curls off her face. He only woke her up when they finally reached Burristown.

"Cristina," he said, giving her a gentle shake. She got up with a start.

"Oh, gosh, don't tell me that I fell asleep. This is so embarrassing, Mr. Parsons," Cristina said, apologetically.

"It's alright that you caught a nap before we start the interviews. We don't know how late we might go tonight," he said. "We're at the hotel, now, so let's check in."

The hotel was not so much of the generic hotel chain that Cristina was used to staying in, when she traveled for the firm. It was a rather charming bed and breakfast inn.

"This is lovely," she said, as she grabbed her overnight case from the trunk.

"Yes, it is. The Cutler House has been here for more than 100 years," he said. "It used to be a private residence until Harry Cutler changed it into a hotel about 50 years ago. I think his son and his wife run the place, now."

They went up the walkway, which was surrounded by a beautiful flower garden. Parsons opened the door for Cristina and as they stepped inside, it seemed like they have been transported into a different era.

"Good morning and welcome," a brown-haired woman behind the front desk said. "I am Charmaine Culter and you must be Mr. Parsons and his guest."

"Yes," Parsons said. "This is Cristina Yang. Do you have our rooms ready?"

"Yes," Charmaine said. "Just a few housekeeping bits here. Can I have your credit card for incidentals?" She swiped the card. She handed them their keys. "Third floor, Room 322 for you, Mr. Parsons and 323 for Ms Yang."

"Thank you," Parsons said, as he took the keys and handed over the 323 key to Cristina.

They got themselves quickly settled into their rooms and then went to Broadsky's diner on Main Street, the appointed meeting place for all of the interviews.

* * *

><p>Back in Seattle, Owen was not a happy man. That morning, he and Steve had their usual gym session.<p>

Owen was really working out furiously, hitting away at the punching bag with a ferocity that Steve had never seen before.

"Hey, what's wrong, big fella?" Steve inquired. It was clear to him that Owen was working out some of his aggression.

"I am just imagining that this punching bag was Parsons' face," Owen said, as he released a flurry of shots.

"Yeah, I heard that he was taking Cristina on an overnight trip to interview clients for his case," Steve said. "When I heard, I knew you would be pissed."

"You know what it's like to watch a man hit on your girlfriend and you can't do anything about it," Owen said. "The only reason that I am holding it together is that I trust my girlfriend that she is not going to do anything to betray me."

"She is a good woman. That's why I introduced you to her. I thought she would be a good match for you," Steve noted.

"Thank you, Steve, for your vote of confidence in Cristina. It means a lot to me," Owen said.

He again hit the punching bag with a vicious left hook.

* * *

><p>Word had spread that the lawyers representing Burristown were in town to interview the affected townsfolk. So far, Cristina had already interviewed 20 people who complained of major lung and respiratory ailments, animals dying on the farms, the high incidence of chronic asthma among the children. It was all rather depressing, Cristina thought, but at least they will have their day in court.<p>

She observed that Parsons was talking with a woman with dishwater blonde hair. He looked across at her and asked her to come across.

"Cristina Yang, I would like you to meet Mrs. Minnie Robertson. Minnie has been suffering with lung cancer now for the past two years. Minnie has never smoked a day in her life," Parsons said.

"Pleased to meet you, Mrs. Robertson," Cristina said. So this was Minnie, Parsons' cousin.

"Nice to meet you, Miss Yang. I hope you all can really help us. Too many families are being affected," Minnie replied.

"We will do our very best for you," Cristina said.

"Okay, Yang, I think we can call it a night. Let's wrap up and just ask the people who we have not interviewed as yet to come back in the morning," Parsons said. "Minnie will be my last interviewee for the night. Why don't you head back to the hotel and freshen up? I will come and meet you and we will go and grab dinner."

"Okay," Cristina nodded. She told the group of people that had gathered that they would be conducting more interviews the next day and she invited them to return. There was some grumbling but most left peacefully. Cristina watched how compassionate Parsons was, as he interviewed his cousin. She had noticed that he had been the same way with everyone he had interviewed that day. She liked that about him. It was like seeing a new side of him, not just the man-eating shark he appeared to be, whenever he was in the courtroom.

She walked back to the hotel, which was a short distance away. She walked up the stairs to her room. She had left her phone in her room because she felt it would have been rude to have a constantly ringing phone when she was interviewing people. She had a number of missed calls, most of them were from the office and about three of them were from Owen.

She decided to call Owen first before listening to any of her messages.

"Where have you been?" he asked, in a somewhat angry tone.

"Been interviewing clients," she said, a little peeved at how he was talking to her.

"Why didn't you answer your phone?" he continued, with the same pissed attitude.

"I left it in the room because I didn't want to be disturbed, while interviewing clients. I thought it would have been rude, if the phone kept ringing while I was interviewing them. I didn't want them to think I wasn't taking their case seriously, if I kept answering my phone."

"Oh," he said in a calmer tone. "That makes sense."

"So where are you now?" she asked. "Are you at my place or your apartment?"

"I am at the hospital. I decided to work a double shift. You weren't going to be home and I needed to work to occupy my mind," he answered. "Working to combat my loneliness."

"Awww, poor soul," she said. "When I come back, I will make it all up to you. Maybe a massage and some hot, hot, sex."

He laughed.

"You better," he said, with a chuckle. "So what are you going to do now?"

"I am going to take a shower, change and go to dinner. Mr. Parsons says we will go to dinner in a bit," she said.

He could not help but feel upset, once again. Just hearing the man's name made his temper rise. He controlled his voice as best as he could because he knew that it was not her fault. He felt he could not keep it in any longer.

"Cristina, I am going to be honest with you, here. It has been bothering me for quite a while. I think that Parsons is interested in you, more than you just being his assistant," he said.

"What?" Cristina said. "Don't be ridiculous. This is just your active imagination."

"I am a man, Cristina, I know when a man is interested in a woman," he said.

"You are wrong. He wants to teach me. He wants to make me a better lawyer because I am smart and savvy," she said. "I find it insulting that you would think the only reason that he would be interested in teaching me is because he wants to get me into his bed." Her ire was raised and he could hear it in her voice.

"You are smart and intelligent and I am sure that you can learn lots from him because he is a formidable attorney. But that's not the only thing he wants to teach you, Cristina," he said.

"You are just jealous," Cristina said. "I knew you didn't like Mr. Parsons but I only thought it was because he was monopolizing my time with work. You're wrong. Mr. Parsons is not interested in me, that way. He is just interested in my brain."

"I truly hope so, Cristina," he said. "I really do."

"I think you have insulted me, enough for the evening," she said. "Goodbye, Owen. I will see you tomorrow."

"I am sorry, Cristina, if I upset you," he started to apologize. Then he heard a click. She had hung up on him. Owen stared at the phone.

Cristina was very annoyed. How dare Owen cast aspersions on the people she worked with? She had never made any negative comments about the hospital and the people that worked there. The last time she was at the hospital, there was a random nurse openly flirting with him, who only stopped when she realized that he was with his girlfriend. She never said anything about that.

She stripped off her clothes and went into the shower, hoping that the warm water would help calm her wound up emotions, right now. She started to cry because she realized that this was the first argument she and Owen had ever had before. She had a good cry, which she found it to be cathartic.

She grabbed a towel and carefully wrapped it around herself. She heard a knock on the door. She knew that it could only be Parsons. She carefully positioned herself behind the door, so he could only see her head.

"Ah, Yang, are you ready as yet?" he said.

"No, sir, just got out of the shower," she said. He caught a glimpse of her bare shoulders and found them, rather tempting.

"Well, okay then. I will meet you downstairs in the dining room," he said.

"Yes, Mr. Parsons," she said, as she closed the door.

Fifteen minutes later, she met him in the dining room. She was dressed in a burgundy sweater, black jeans and ankle boots. Parsons admired how well the jeans hugged her figure.

"Some wine?" he asked.

"Yes, please," she said, watching him pour the white wine into her glass. She needed that drink after that fight with Owen.

"I ordered for myself and took the liberty of ordering for you, too, so you wouldn't have to wait. Is salmon fine for you?" he said.

"That's fine," she said. She quickly drank the wine and he filled it up her glass, again.

"Ah, here's our food," he said, as the waiter placed their meals in front of him.

"Cheers, Yang," he said, lifting his glass to her. Cristina smiled back at him.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. Thanks for your comments.**


	11. Chapter 11 Taking a break

Cristina woke up with a start. She looked at the digital clock on the bedside table.

"Good grief, it's that late already," she yelled to herself. She was still wearing the clothes she had on from the night before, when she had dinner with Parsons.

They had consumed two bottles of wine and Cristina, who was not much of a drinker, had felt light-headed. He helped her to up the stairs and to her room and wished her good night. She went into her room and immediately crashed on to the bed, falling asleep within minutes.

Parsons knew he could have taken advantage of Cristina, when her defenses were down but that was not going to be his _modus operandi_. He knew that the best way to get someone like Cristina was to have her come to him and to make it seem like it was her decision to do so. Till then, he was going to be the perfect gentleman.

Cristina ran to the bathroom, brushed her teeth and had a shower. She dressed quickly in a dove-grey suit and ran down the stairs, heading over to the diner, where they would continue to conduct the interviews. When she got there, she already saw Parsons interviewing someone there.

He watched her as she came in. She felt a little ashamed to be so late but he just smiled at her and gave her a wave. She went to the counter and ordered a coffee and a cream cheese bagel. She needed to get some sustenance before she could start her day.

Parsons finished up his interview and joined her at her table. He ordered a cup of coffee and waited for the waitress to pour his cup and leave before he spoke.

"So how was your night?" he asked.

"I feel bad that I got up so late," she said, munching into her bagel.

"That's okay. I let you sleep in. It's not that late and so far, only two people have showed up, and I already interviewed and sent them on their way," he said, taking a sip of his black coffee.

"So how long do you think that we will run these interviews for?" she asked.

"I think the cut-off time is about 4.30 so we can get out of here by 5 p.m. At lunchtime, we will check out of the hotel and just put our stuff in the car and be on our way that much faster in the evening. We should be back in Seattle by 7 p.m. Does that work for you?"

"Yup, that works," she said.

It was another tiring day for Parsons and Cristina, as they interviewed their clients. Most of their stories were very similar with tales of woe about illnesses in the household, sick animals and lost wages due to the illnesses. The day passed quickly and soon it was 4.30 in the afternoon.

They packed up all of their recording equipment, their papers and their laptops. After a brief stop in the restroom and an order of sandwiches and coffee, they were on their way. The drive back was lively, as the two discussed the case. Their interviews had provided them with lots of ammunition to pursue this case. Cristina was extremely revved up about this case. It would be the biggest case she had ever worked on, in her entire career, and if they were successful, it would be incredible to put that on her resume.

He dropped her off at her home. The house was in darkness, so she knew that Owen was not there. She hadn't spoken to him for the entire day. As she kicked off her shoes and put down her laptop, she looked at her phone. There were a couple of messages, with one of them from Owen.

"Cristina," he said. "Tried calling you today. I guess you left your phone in the room, again. When you get home, can you please call me? No matter what time it is, please call me."

She didn't really feel like talking to him. She went to her bedroom, drew herself a warm bath and soaked for about 45 minutes in the bubbles. She closed her eyes and did some serious thinking while she was in the bathtub. She knew what she had to do. It would not be easy, she thought. She dried herself off, sat on her bed, picked up her phone receiver and dialed his number.

"Cristina!" he said, joyfully. "You're home. Can I come over?"

"Hey," she said, quietly.

"I want to see you. Can I come over, please?" he asked, again.

"I don't think so," she said, speaking in the same quiet tone.

"Why?" he asked, anxiously. "Are you still mad about what I said yesterday? I apologize about that. If I come over, we will talk about it. Please."

"I am not mad, anymore, Owen but it did give me food for thought," she said.

"If you're not mad, anymore, then what's happening here?" he said, fearful of what she was going to say next.

She sighed before she said it. "I think we should take a break, Owen."

"Are you breaking up with me?" he was incredulous. "Just like that, you're breaking up with me. Is it because of what I said, yesterday?"

"I am not breaking up with you. I just think we should take a break, give each other some space," she said. "And what you said yesterday just made me think a little bit."

"So, I believe that your boss wants you for more than just being his assistant. I still think so. So you're going to hold that against me?" he asked.

"I just think that while I am working on this particular case for this particular boss, it might be better if we just have some space. Mr Parsons has been nothing but a gentleman to me. He hasn't made any untoward moves or advances. He has been perfectly professional towards me," she said.

She continued, "And I cannot continue working for him on this case – this huge, massive case – which could establish my career and then, come home to hear you denigrate my boss."

He was flabbergasted. "So while we're on this break, are we allowed to see other people, to go out on dates with other people?"

She paused. She really didn't want him dating but she felt that she could not keep him from going out with other people. After all, even though they had been exclusively dating for the past six months, they had never mentioned the "l" word to each other. They had never said that they loved each other.

She answered carefully, "I don't think I can stop you from seeing other people, if you wanted to do so."

That was not what he wanted to hear. He wanted her to emphatically state that she did not want him dating other people because that is what he wanted from her. "So that goes both ways, doesn't it? You can date other people on this break, right?" he asked, dejectedly.

"I was not planning to date," she said. "I just said that I couldn't stop you, if you decided to see other people."

"I don't want to see other people. I just want to see you. And you're telling me that I can't see you," he said.

"Just for this case and trial, if it gets that far. I am going to be working really long hours with Mr. Parsons on this case and I can't have any negativity from you about him. That would just be added stress," she said.

"So, let's just take a break for the time being. It won't be that bad. Mr. Parsons thinks we have enough evidence to get an out-of-court settlement," she added.

He sighed, loudly. "If this is what you want, okay. Goodbye, Cristina."

"Goodbye, Owen," she said, quietly. She hung up the phone and snuggled under her blankets. It had been a tiring two days and she was exhausted. She really hadn't wanted to hurt Owen and she knew that she probably did, by asking for this break. In fact, she knew she was hurting herself with this break because deep down inside, she knew that she loved him.

Owen closed his eyes. He could not believe it. This was not how he envisioned how he wanted to welcome her back into town. He thought he would have been able to come over, they could order some food and they would have spent the night, making love and then, falling asleep together. That is what he had wanted.

He wondered if he should just have kept his mouth shut about his suspicions about Parsons. But, in reality, he knew that he did not regret it. It needed to be said; she had to know what were Parsons' intentions towards her. Maybe she needed to figure it out for herself. He just hoped that she would not fall into Parsons' web. She was a smart woman, he consoled himself, and she will figure it out.

In the meantime, all he felt was alone. He already started missing her because deep down inside, he knew that he loved her.

* * *

><p>The next day at work, Cristina and Parsons were in his office, looking over the interviews they had with their clients.<p>

"So, you know, Yang, this case would mean working some very late nights, here with me. I hope you explained that to your boyfriend," Parsons said.

"Yes, sir, I am aware of that. I can assure you that it will definitely not be a problem," she said, firmly.

He immediately picked up from the tone of her voice that there may have been a separation between her and her boyfriend. "Hmm," he thought, "things are definitely shifting in my favor."

"Well, okay then. Let's get to work, shall we?" he said. His plan, to have her see him in the most favorable light, was actually coming to pass. He was definitely excited by the chase. He beamed at her.

She looked up at him. Surely, Owen was wrong about him, she thought. Was there something that she was just not seeing? She had a nagging feeling that possibly, Owen could be right.

"Yes, sir, I am ready to start," she answered.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. I do appreciate reading them. They do inspire me to continue, when there are times that I feel like chucking the whole thing in.**


	12. Chapter 12 The truth

Owen was quiet as he did his workout. He was not in a chatty mood, Steve observed. He wondered what was wrong. It was the first time Steve had seen him in several days, since he was unable to meet up for their usual workout time.

"Hey, Owen, what's up, buddy? You don't seem like yourself," Steve enquired.

"Yeah, you're right, I am not myself. I have not been myself for the past week," Owen said. Steve knew immediately that the only reason that Owen could be in this mood was Cristina. He had seen the young lawyer, working assiduously with Parsons on their Burristown class action suit. For the past few nights, they had been working very late hours.

"Cristina?" he asked.

"It always is Cristina, isn't it?" Owen said. "I wanted a relationship and it is the relationship that keeps messing me up the most."

"Well, I have seen her at work and she has been working late nights. Is that it?" Steve asked.

"I don't know if she has been working late nights or not, Steve. We're not communicating these days because we're on a so-called break." Owen said. "We're on a break – what a laughable concept."

"What? Are you broken up?" Steve said, shocked.

"According to Cristina, we are not broken up. We are on a break but since we're not allowed to contact or communicate each other, it might as well have been a break-up. She even said she couldn't stop me if I wanted to date other people, while we were on this break," Owen said, slamming down the weights.

"And are you going to see other people? I suppose that condition works both ways," Steve said.

"No, I don't want to see other people. And yes, she can see other people, if she wishes. She says she is not planning to date but that doesn't mean she won't. The thought of another man touching her is too unbearable to even think about. It doesn't help me that she is working so closely with Parsons, when I know his agenda with her," Owen said.

"Did you tell her what you suspected about him?" Steve said.

"Yes, I did and you know that blew up in my face. All I got from telling her that is this break," Owen said. "She said that Parsons has been a total gentleman to her and very professional. She said all my negativity would hamper her working relationship with the man. And that while she was working on this massive case, we should take a break." Owen spat out the words, he was so angry.

"It's okay, buddy. I will look out for you at work. I will be your eyes on the inside," Steve said. "Nobody treats my buddy this way."

Owen had to smile. "Thanks, I need somebody in my corner because right now, I am on the outside by myself, looking in."

* * *

><p>Cristina sat in her office, working diligently on finishing a brief. She was interrupted by a knock on her door.<p>

"Cristina, can I see you?" Steve Johnson was at her door.

Cristina was surprised. Why would one of the partners of the firm want to see her?

"Certainly, sir. I will be in your office in five minutes. Just have to finish this paragraph," she said.

"Okay, I will see you then," Johnson said.

She finished up her writing and headed down to Johnson's office. His secretary told her to go right in.

"Yes, sir," she said. "What can I help you with?"

"Well, you can tell me how are things working out with you and Parsons on this case?" Steve asked.

"So far, I think we are making great headway for an out of court settlement. That would be the best deal, so we can avoid all those court costs but if they are not willing to play ball, then we may have no choice but to go to court. But so far, I think it is going well. We will be having a meeting with the other side today, where we are going to hear their first offer," Cristina said.

"Ah, so this can be wrapped up pretty quickly, if we get a settlement and avoid court," Johnson said.

"Yes, sir," Cristina affirmed.

"Well, then, I was wondering as soon as you're finished on that case, I would like you to help me with one of mine," Steve said, handing her a file. "I've already started working on with a couple of the law associates but you're welcome to join the team."

She did an initial perusal of the case. Indeed, it was a great case, involving a takeover offer between rival companies.

"Yes, sir, it would be a privilege to work with you on this case," Cristina said. "But I don't know if Mr. Parsons would release me, after we complete this current case."

"I am a partner and I can override Parsons, if need be," Steve said. "The only question is whether you would want to leave him and work with me."

"Let me think about it, sir. Mr. Parsons has been good to me," Cristina said. "He has been showing me a lot."

"I know that. He is a good mentor. I just thought that you might want to work on this case with me," Steve said.

"I would, sir but let me discuss first with Mr. Parsons," Cristina said. "And thank you for offering me this opportunity."

"You are a brilliant woman, Cristina. I think we could be grooming you to become a partner in a couple of years," Steve said, honestly.

"Why, thank you, sir. That is a huge compliment," she said, smiling. "Will that be all because I have to get back to work?"

"Yes, Yang," Steve told her. He watched her depart from his office. He was doing his best to help Owen out by having her work with him. Parsons was indeed a slippery character and he would hate to see Owen lose out on a relationship in which he was clearly invested. He could sense that his friend loved the young woman. He knew guys like Parsons viewed everything in life as a challenge to be conquered and Cristina was just one of them.

* * *

><p>The negotiations with the Chartwell lawyers proved to be particularly fierce and went on for an entire week. Chartwell certainly wanted to avoid the publicity that a trial would bring and they were more amenable to an out-of-court settlement. However, the negotiations on that settlement were proving to be particularly dicey for the company, given how far their proposed figure was to what the Burristown people were asking for.<p>

Cristina and the other law associates were impressed at Parsons's skills in the process. In the end, they both reached a figure - $225 million. It was a less than the $250 million that the Burristown people had asked for but it was a great settlement.

It was such a celebratory occasion that the law firm invited some of the townsfolk to witness the signing of the settlement, a week after the negotiations ended. Ten Burristown residents attended on behalf of their town, including Minnie Robertson.

As everyone toasted the settlement, Cristina found herself, chatting with Minnie. She enquired about her health.

"Well, I do have my good days and my bad days. The bad days are when I have to get chemo. I just feel so beat-up after that," Minnie said. "This settlement will go a long way in helping me pay for my expenses. Insurance only goes so far."

"Well, it is a great thing that your cousin is an amazing lawyer," Cristina said.

"What cousin?" Minnie asked, a little baffled at what Cristina was saying.

"Your cousin, Mr. Parsons?" Cristina said, starting to wonder what was going on.

"Mr. Parsons is not my cousin," Minnie said. "He contacted me after he saw our story in the newspaper and said he was interested in pursuing our case on our behalf and that his firm would only get paid, if we won our settlement. Well, he is indeed a brilliant lawyer but he is not my cousin."

"Excuse me, Mrs. Robertson. I think I need to go and check something," Cristina said, as she left the conference room. She shot Parsons a deadly look before she left. He was taken aback by the venom in her stare.

She immediately went to a computer and started researching the background of Mr. Parsons. She had never done that before. All she knew about him was his academic background and his work experience. There it was, Parsons was born and raised in Denver, Colorado, nowhere near Burristown, Washington. So, everything he told her about being a little boy in Burristown and helping his relatives, was just a major lie.

Had he been lying to her all this time? So he could get her sympathy to work on this case. He probably knew that this case would appeal to her altruistic side to help the little guy. Was that how he was going to worm his way into her personal life? Was Owen right about him? That all Parsons wanted to do was to get her in his bed?

She felt insulted by all of this. Here she was, thinking that Parsons was interested in her for her brain when all he wanted was for her to be another notch on his bedpost. He was so sneaky and manipulative, Cristina thought. No wonder he won almost all of his cases. She chided herself about being taken by him. Well, no more would she be taken for a fool. She was going to take up Mr. Johnson on his offer to help with his case.

She went back to the conference room, spotted Mr. Johnson chatting with one of the Burristown residents. She made a beeline to where he stood.

"Mr. Johnson, I was wondering if that offer still stood about working on that case with you," she said. Johnson looked at her, aware that something had obviously happened for her to approach him about the case. He wondered what it was.

"It is, Cristina. If you wish to join the team, I will be happy to welcome you. Your work on this case has been outstanding and I would be thrilled if you would work with me," Johnson said.

"Thank you, sir. I will be in your office, bright and early to discuss what you need me to do," Cristina said. "I have somewhere to be, right now. So I will bid you good night.:

As she left, she gave Parsons a scathing look. She knew she had to go somewhere to apologize to someone she knew she had hurt.

She had the cab drop her off to Owen's apartment building. She went up to his apartment, rehearsing what she was going to say to him. She rang his doorbell and waited. She hoped he was home because she really needed to say this to him. She really hoped that he did not have another woman in his apartment, even though she knew she had given him permission to date, if he wanted.

It seemed like he was taking forever to answer the door. Finally, his door opened. He was obviously shocked to see her there, since they had no communication with each other for the past three weeks. He was bare-chested and was just wearing a sweatpants. He gave a little stretch and she had to admire his body before she spoke.

"Hey," she said.

"Hey, yourself. What are you doing here?" he asked. "Not that I am not pleased to see you, but I thought we were on a break."

"Yeah, I just needed to talk to you. Is anyone with you? I can come back. I don't want to interrupt," she said.

"Why would anyone be here?" he said. "I wasn't going to date anyone while we were on this break. I am committed to you."

"Oh," she said. "Can I come in?"

"Oh, yes. Come on in. Why didn't you use your key?" he asked.

"It didn't seem appropriate since we were on this break," she said. "Plus I didn't want to create an uncomfortable situation, in case you were with someone." He shook his head.

She came in, put down her handbag and sat on the couch. She took in a deep breath and let it out. Eating humble pie did not come easy to her.

"You were right," she finally told him.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. I do appreciate reading them.**


	13. Chapter 13 Apology

"Um, what did you say?" Owen said.

"You were right. He was playing me. Playing me for a fool," she said, fidgeting a little. She was feeling very uncomfortable. She hated being wrong and not only was she wrong, she had been rather forthright about it, too.

"Oh, I see," he said. He fought the urge to say, "I told you so" even though he wanted to do so. He knew she was already feeling badly, so he didn't think crowing about it would help the situation.

"How did you find out?" he asked.

"Well, I guess I can talk about the case, now. It was already in the papers. We won a settlement against this company, Chartwell, whose operations had been polluting around this town called Burristown. A pretty good settlement, I might add. Anyway, one of the reasons that the firm decided to take up this case was that Mr. Parsons had said that this was his hometown until he was about 12. He even told me that he still had family there," Cristina said.

"So he appealed to your altruistic side to get you interested in this case," Owen said. "Your desire to help the little guy."

"Yup, he did. I worked like a beast on that case with him," she said, shaking her head. "I was so committed to it because it would not only help the townspeople but also Mr. Parsons' family. He even introduced me to this woman, Minnie Robertson, who had developed cancer because of the pollution. He told me that the woman was his cousin."

"Okay," Owen said. "Go on."

"Well, we had an official signing of the settlement, today and we had asked a couple of the townspeople to come up to witness the signing. So I was chatting with Minnie afterwards and I told her she was lucky to have Mr Parsons as a cousin, since he was such an amazing lawyer. And this is where I got a surprise," she said.

"Okay, you're killing me here. What did you find out?" he said.

"She told me that she and Mr. Parsons were not even related and that he had contacted her when he had read about her and her town's plight in the newspaper. So that's when I found out he had been lying to me all of the time. I did some research and found out that he was from Denver, Colorado. I am so mad that he took me for a fool," Cristina said. "He wanted me to think how great a guy he was and I guess he expected me to fall under his spell. He obviously didn't pick me to work on the case because of my brain. It was because he wanted something else."

She continued, "I can't stand a liar. That just eats me up how he could lie to me like that. In any case, you were right and I was wrong. I apologize. I didn't listen to you and I am sorry about that," she said. She moved to get her handbag from off the couch, as she got ready to leave.

"What are you doing?" he asked, as he watched her pick up her handbag.

"I just came to say that," she said. "I came to apologize and I am leaving now."

"Nobody asked you to leave," he said.

"I showed up, uninvited and I didn't call before. I don't want to impose on you. You may want to go to bed or something," she said, walking towards the door.

"What?" he said. "I don't want you to leave because we haven't discussed our break."

"Oh," she said.

"Yes, oh. I want to know if this break is over. You apologized for not believing me but you haven't talked about this break we're on," he said. "Is this break over? Because believe me, I want this break to be over. Three weeks without a word from you have been pure torture."

"I guess it is over. The case is over. I had said that when the case was over, the break would be over," she said.

"But what about the damage that this break has done to our relationship?" he said. "We just can't fall back into where we were before."

"What are you saying?" she asked, a little unsure of what he was trying to say.

"I'm saying that we can't just go back to how we were. This break, unilaterally decided by you, really hurt me," he said. "This cannot happen again. You decide, without any regard for my feelings, that we are going on a break with no communication, no contact."

"I am sorry but I was getting too much negativity from you and it was affecting my working relationship. Granted you were right and I was wrong but from my perspective, you were just behaving like a jealous boyfriend and Mr. Parsons had not yet done anything for me to doubt his intentions," Cristina said.

"Yes, but I wouldn't tell you anything to hurt you. I was just trying to protect you because I was aware of his agenda. The thing is you doubted me. I care about you. I love you. I would only want the best for you," he said.

"You love me?" she said in disbelief.

"Yeah, I love you. Is that so hard for you to believe? Why do you think that this break hurt me so much?" he said. "But it seems to me that you don't feel for me as much as I feel for you. We are a couple; we're supposed to be committed to each other. At least, I am."

"I do feel for you, Owen," she said. "It's just hard for me to articulate my feelings. I am not the type to do so."

"I can wait till you are ready to tell me what you feel. But are you committed to me?" he asked. "That's what I want to know."

"Yes," she said, quietly.

"Good," he said. "Then you are not going to take any more unilateral decisions that affect us as a couple. Right?"

"Yes," she said, quietly.

"Good," he said. "So can you come to me and let me kiss you?"

"Yes," she said, quietly. She walked over to him. He took her handbag out of her hand and rested it down on a chair. He took her face into his hands and gently kissed her lips. "I have missed you, terribly. The feel of you, the smell of you, touching you, loving you. This hair," he said, as he ran his fingers through her tresses. "Stay with me, tonight. Don't go." Her brown eyes locked with his blue eyes for a few seconds, before she responded to him by kissing him, passionately. They fell on to the sofa, as their kisses became ever more fervent.

"Let's go to the bedroom," she whispered. "Much more comfortable than this sofa." They didn't stop their urgent kissing as they made their way into the bedroom.

They hurriedly took off each other's clothes until they were both bare. She pushed him on to the bed and started kissing his broad chest and arms, working her way down to his stomach, while she started massaging his member. He could feel himself hardening in her small hand. It was when she took the tip in her mouth and sucked it, he was almost beside himself.

"Oh, baby," he said, closing his eyes, as he felt her tongue sensuously licked the length of his shaft. As she bopped down on it, he stroked her hair. He was rock hard in her mouth.

"Please," he said. He pulled her up to kiss him. He so badly wanted to be in her, to feel her warm, wet walls encircling him. He reached down and touched her, glad to find that she was already drenched with desire.

"I am going to give you the ride of your life," she whispered, as she lowered herself on his cock. As she rocked her body on top of him, he held on to her tiny waist, marveling at her beauty. She really was working it hard for him and it felt incredibly glorious, he thought. He could feel himself coming, jerking his body upwards and exploding inside of her.

She lay on his chest, with him still inside of her. She was tired from all of her exertion.

"Was that your way of saying that you're apologizing?" he asked, caressing her back.

"Kind of," she said.

"Baby, that apology was accepted and more," he said. They both laughed.

* * *

><p>She sat at her desk, awaiting the usual morning call. There it was, right on time, he was calling for her.<p>

She picked up the receiver. "Yes, Mr. Parsons, I will be in your office in a moment."

She put down the phone in disgust and slowly made her way to Parsons' office.

"Ah, Yang, I have a new case, this morning. Here, take a look at this file," he said, pushing the case folder towards her.

"I am sorry, Mr. Parsons, I will be unable to help you on this case," she said. "I am sure one of the other associates will be able to help you."

"But you did so well on the Burristown case. Why don't we keep up our winning streak?" he said. He had noted that the young woman had given him a couple of glares, before she had left the night before. He thought she probably was in a bad mood.

"Well, sir, I am already working on another case," Cristina said.

"What case?" he asked, surprised.

"Mr. Johnson has asked that I assist him on the takeover offer," she said.

"What? He didn't ask me first," Parsons said, up in arms.

"Well, he is a partner of this firm. I felt that I couldn't refuse," she said.

"I am going to talk to him about this," Parsons said, getting up to go argue with Johnson.

"I wish you wouldn't, sir," she said. "I would like to work on this case with Mr. Johnson."

"So, what about our work, here?" Parsons enquired. "My mentoring you?"

"I have realized that this mentorship comes with a price and it is not one that I am willing to pay," she said.

"What are you talking about?" he said.

"Sir, you are a brilliant lawyer and I know that there is a lot that I can learn from you. However, while there are many things that I am willing to endure for that tutelage, I refuse to be lied to and be taken for a fool. I am very aware of your agenda, even though it took me a while to see it.

"Being able to trust my superior is very important to me and since I cannot do that with you, I believe this mentorship is over. I hope you have a good morning," she said, as she left in his office. He was left with his mouth open.

She walked down the corridor and went to Johnson's office. His secretary waved her in.

"Good morning, Mr. Johnson," she said.

"Good morning, Yang. Are you ready?" he asked.

"Yes, I am very ready, sir," she said, sitting down and opening her notebook.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. Thank you for your comments.**


	14. Chapter 14 Hospital visit

Cristina woke up not feeling well. The pain she felt in her stomach was nauseating. He found her, hanging over the toilet bowl.

"How sick are you feeling?" Owen asked. "Maybe you shouldn't go to work today."

She said, "I think it is some weird stomach bug. I think I will go in for a little bit because I have something to finish for Mr. Johnson and then I'll take an early day and come home."

"Alright," he said. "Well, we better get ready, then."

He dropped her off at her office building. She still looked pale from her adventures in the bathroom, that morning. She had also completely lost her appetite.

As Cristina headed up to the office, she had minimized the extent of the pain she was feeling to Owen. If he had known how badly she was feeling, he would have insisted that she stay at home. However, she had promised Mr. Johnson she would be finished with that piece of work by today. If there is one thing that could be said about Cristina Yang, it was that she was reliable and efficient.

As she walked into her office, Terry took one look at her. "Damn, girl, you look whiter than a ghost."

"I have been puking my guts out since this morning. Jeez, I don't know if it is something that I ate or if it is a stomach bug. I feel like a mess," Cristina said.

"You're sure you're not pregnant for the doctor?" Terry speculated.

"No, I am not pregnant. My period ended two days ago, so we can rule that out. Thank God," Cristina said.

"So if you're feeling so pukey, why the heck did you come to work?" Terry said.

"I had this thing to finish off for Mr. Johnson. I didn't want to keep his work back because I was sick. So, I thought I would come and do it and then head back home," Cristina said. "Can you imagine I am puking and I didn't have anything to eat this morning? I just have no appetite."

"Well, hurry up and finish it and get out of here. I don't want you spreading some nasty stomach bug around here," Terry said.

"I will try and keep my distance," Cristina said, smiling weakly. She opened her folder of notes, turned on her computer and then, started writing. An hour later, she was done. She emailed the document to Mr. Johnson.

"I think I am headed home now," she told Terry, as she got up from her desk. She held on to the desk because she was starting to feel a little woozy.

"Are you alright?" Terry asked.

"A little bit light-headed," Cristina said. "Just going for a little chat with Mr. Johnson and then I am out of here." She picked up her handbag. The pain on her right side was excruciating, as she slowly made her way up to the Johnson's office. The secretary nodded at her as she went into his office.

"Ah, Cristina, just got your document. Excellent work, as usual," Steve said. He noted Cristina's very pale face. "Are you alright?"

"Not really, sir," she said. "Just came to tell you that I am headed home. I think I have some sort of stomach flu and it's taking me down for the count."

"Have a seat," Steve said. "I will drive you home." Cristina unsteadily tried to get to the chair before the room started spinning and she collapsed on the ground.

"Cristina!" Steve said, rushing to the other side of his desk. "Sylvia, please come and help me."

His secretary ran into his office. "What happened?" Sylvia asked.

"She just collapsed," Steve said.

"Let me go call 911," Sylvia said.

"No, I will take her to the hospital, myself. Who knows when they will get here? This is my best friend's girlfriend and I can't be the one to tell him that I didn't do everything to help her," Steve said, picking up Cristina's small, limp body off the floor.

He ran with her to the elevator, as everyone came out of their offices to stare. He headed down to basement parking, found his car and placed her in the backseat. Her body felt warm, like if she was running a fever.

"Don't worry, Cristina, I am going to get you some help," Steve said. He immediately headed to Seattle Grace's ER. He heard her stirring in the back seat.

"Cristina?" he asked.

"Yes," was her weak response.

"We're headed to the hospital. Owen will be there," Steve said. He realized he hadn't gotten a chance to call Owen to tell him beforehand but it didn't matter as he had forgotten his phone in his office.

"The hospital? I hate hospitals," Cristina squeaked.

That made Steve chuckle. "You hate hospitals and your boyfriend is a surgeon? Now that is funny," he said.

He finally reached the hospital and parked in the emergency bay. "You can't park here," a security guard yelled.

"I will move it as soon as I get her inside," Steve yelled back, running with Cristina in his arms through the emergency doors. Fortunately, he spotted Owen talking to a nurse.

"Owen, Owen, she just collapsed!" Steve screamed at him. Owen turned around and was shocked to see his girlfriend in his best friend's arms.

"Put her on a table," he yelled back.

"Cristina," Owen said. "Tell me where it hurts." She showed him the area in the lower right abdomen. He lifted her shirt and pressed down on it.

"Owww," she cried as tears rolled down her face.

"It looks like it is her appendix," Owen said "Why the heck didn't I see this, when she told me that she was feeling ill this morning? Cristina, we will have to take you into surgery. Thomas, please start her on the antibiotics. Take a blood test. Page Dr Bailey to handle this. Tell her it is a suspected appy. I can't go into the OR because she is my girlfriend."

As they rushed Cristina off, Owen turned to Steve. "Thank you."

"No thanks necessary. You would have killed me if something had happened to her while I was standing three feet away from her. I am glad she is in good hands now," Steve said. "I am headed back to the office, now. There is a security guard who wants me to move my vehicle, right now. Keep me posted, Owen." He slapped his friend on his back before leaving.

Owen could not leave the OR, right away, since he was the doctor in charge of the ER. When everything seemed to be under control, he headed to the OR viewing gallery for the operation. He was still blaming himself that he had not insisted that she be checked out properly before she left home. She hadn't been making too much of a fuss when he left home, so they thought it was just a common stomach bug.

When he got to the gallery, he could see Dr Bailey getting ready to use the laparascope. He knew she was a very competent, highly skilled surgeon but he wished he could be in there, himself. It was an operation that Dr Bailey did every week, so that wasn't the problem. He just wanted to be in there, to sit at her head and watch her.

He was paged to the ER before the operation was over. Several car crash victims had come in and he was forced to go into his own surgery before he even found out about the outcome of his girlfriend's operation.

Emerging from his OR, he found out that his girlfriend's operation ended hours ago and she was back in her room, recovering. He found her room and went in. She was already awake. He gave her a soft kiss on the forehead.

"So it wasn't a stomach flu," he said. "Why didn't you tell me how much pain you were in?"

"So you could force me to come down to the hospital?" Cristina said.

"What's wrong with the hospital?" he said. "Come to think of it, you have never been here before."

"I hate hospitals," she said.

"Your boyfriend is a surgeon and you hate hospitals?" he laughed.

"That's what Mr. Johnson said and he laughed, too. What's so funny about that?" she said, indignantly.

"Nothing. So how are you feeling now?" he asked.

"A little bit sore but I am okay," she said. "How long would I have to stay here? I have lots of work to do."

"Come on, my Asian princess. Maybe two days. Let me take care of you," he said. "Have some ice chips."

"Can you go home and get me some of my own stuff, please?" she asked.

"Yeah, do you want me to stay with you during the night?" he asked.

"No, I am okay. It's not like if I am dying or anything. You can go home and sleep in a nice, comfy bed. You can come and see me in the morning. Besides, I am a little tired," she said.

"Okay, I'll be back in the morning. You can have the nurses call me if you need anything," he said. He kissed her on the lips. "Bye, lover."

"Bye, honey," she said. She went back to sleep soon after. It was the voices just outside of the door that woke her up in the middle of the night. It sounded like nurses and if she had heard correctly, they were discussing her.

"Do you know that this one – Cristina Yang – is Dr. Hunt's girlfriend?" the first nurse said.

"Aw, what a pity. He's taken. Half the nurses around here would be sorry to hear that. The man is a catch. But that won't stop Dr. Brenda Fielder. She won't care that he has a girlfriend. She has been eyeing him since he came here," the second nurse said.

"That Dr. Fielder has no respect for other women's men. Remember when she chased down Dr Coulter, even though she knew he was married to Dr Russell? He was weak. They had that affair for months, hiding in supply closets and on-call rooms. When Dr Russell found out, she gave him the divorce papers, two weeks later," the first nurse said. "Fielder dumped him right after."

"They don't call her Brenda the Barracuda for nothing. She is a total maneater and she just doesn't care who gets hurt. She keeps flirting with him all of the time. She keeps putting it out there for him but he hasn't taken a bite as yet. But you know with Fielder, she always gets her man," the second nurse said.

The two nurses laughed as they walked away from her door.

Cristina was aghast. Who the heck was Dr Fielder and why was it Owen has never told her anything about her? She wondered if she needed to be worried, especially since this Fielder woman always got her man. She could not go back to sleep. There was a barracuda out there trying to get her man. How could she sleep, knowing something like that?

The next morning, Cristina sat in her bed, awaiting her boyfriend. He came in smiling, swinging an overnight case.

"Hey baby," he said. He was puzzled by her expression. "What's the matter?"

"Who is Dr Fielder?" she asked.

"She is an orthopedic surgeon on staff here. Why do you ask? You don't have any bones that need fixing," Owen said.

"I hear she is interested in things, other than people's bones," she said. Owen was surprised that Cristina had spent one night at the hospital and already knew about Dr Fielder and her advances towards him.

"I can assure you, Cristina, that nothing is going on between me and Dr. Fielder," he said.

"Did someone just say my name?" the tall, sophisticated blonde at the door said.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. Thanks for your comments.**


	15. Chapter 15 Marking her territory

The tall, blonde woman stepped into the room with a sunny smile on her face.

"Dr Hunt, did you just say my name?" Dr. Fielder asked.

"Um, yes," Owen said, feeling a little bit uncomfortable.

"So, does the young lady need to have any bones fixed?" Dr. Fielder asked, stepping closer to Cristina's bed. Cristina observed how the woman looked like she was gliding towards the bed. It was almost like if she was on wheels. Cristina made a mental note to learn that trick.

"No, she just heard your name mentioned and asked about you," Owen said, hoping that would be enough to keep the barracuda from asking any questions.

"I hope it wasn't bad things you were hearing about me," Brenda said, smiling. "So who is our patient?"

"This is Cristina Yang. She is my girlfriend. She is in here because she just had an appendectomy," Owen said, emphasizing the word "girlfriend."

"Ah," Brenda said. "Your girlfriend? Very pleased to meet you." Brenda put out a slim hand for Cristina to shake. Cristina politely touched the woman's hand and gave it a brief shake. So this was the woman who was after her man, Cristina thought.

"Why the hell did I have to look like this when I am meeting this woman for the first time?" Cristina thought. She knew she had a bad case of bed hair and she was looking pale from wearing no make up. Cristina looked at the woman's immaculately made up face and well-coiffed hair and suddenly felt very inadequate.

"Well, since I am not needed for any broken bones, I bid you farewell," Brenda said, resting her hand on Owen's shoulder before she left.

Cristina waited until the woman left to utter the words, "I don't like the bitch."

Owen burst out laughing. "Ah, Cristina, you make me laugh so much."

"How dare she touch you on your shoulder? Where does that bitch get off touching my man?" Cristina fumed.

"So I am YOUR man? That is nice to know that you have claimed me," he said, continuing to laugh.

"Stop laughing at me! This is not funny!" she said, fuming, as she balled up her tiny fists.

"Okay," Owen said, trying to stifle his laugh. His girl was so amusing, he thought. "In any case, if everything checks out fine with you, you would probably be able to go home, tomorrow. Do you want to stay at my place while you recover?"

"No," she said. "I'll stay at home. You live at the top of a building. What if I need to get out fast and I won't be able to swiftly move in my condition. At least at my house, I will be able to get out of there fast enough."

"Well, okay, then. I will move in with you, while you recover," he said.

"What difference does that make? You're always there, anyway," she said.

"Come on, humor me. Let it seem like I am making an effort," he said, kissing her on the lips. "Anyway, I have got to go down to the pit."

"Okay," she said. As he left, she turned on the television and settled down to watching a Law and Order: SVU marathon on USA network. Her viewing time was only interrupted by her doctor, a couple of nurses and Owen, who popped in several times for the day.

She liked how Detective Olivia Benson, played by Mariska Hargitay, was so strong and sexy at the same time. She fell asleep, dreaming that she was a tough cop, working the mean streets of New York City and arresting all of the bad guys. She was about to give the beatdown to this perpetrator, this tall blonde woman, who had more than a striking resemblance to a female doctor she had met that day. She was going to give the blonde woman a nasty right hook, when the voices outside of her door roused her from her sleep. She opened her eyes and looked at the time. It was already 11.32 p.m.

"Damn those nurses. I was just about to take down the criminal," she thought. "Outside my door must be Gossip Central." She recognized the voices as belonging to that of the two nurses who were gossiping the night before about Brenda the Barracuda. They were clearly not aware of how their voices carried. She wished she could thank them for giving her a heads-up about the Barracuda's intentions towards her guy. She listened closely to their conversation.

The first nurse chuckled as she told the second nurse, "I heard the Barracuda was introduced to Hunt's girlfriend. One of the nurses from the early shift told me."

"I think he was probably trying to make a point," the second nurse said. "To let her know that he was otherwise occupied."

"As if that ever stopped her before," the first nurse said, laughing. "He can run but he cannot hide."

The rest of it turned to low murmurs, as the two nurses moved away from her door. "What the hell is this?" Cristina said to herself. "Does this mean I have to go on the defensive? Well, if she thinks that this is going to be a walkover, she really has underestimated me."

* * *

><p>The next morning, after being checked out by her doctor, she was discharged from the hospital. The orderly was helping her into her wheelchair to leave, when Owen arrived.<p>

"I'll take it from here, John," he said. "She's coming home with me." The orderly gave him a brief smile and walked out of the room.

"So you're ready, baby?" he asked.

"Yes, more than ready. You know how much I hate hospitals," she said. "They gave me three weeks at home. I don't think I will need all that time off."

"Well, you never know how fast you will recover. Some people take a longer time than others," he said, as he placed her bag on her lap and wheeled her out of the room. "But won't it be good to get some legitimate time off from the office?"

"I have so much work to do on that case I am working on with Mr. Johnson," she said.

"I am pretty sure Steve will understand. Besides, he is my best friend. He better well understand," he said, as they headed towards the hospital doors. Out of the corner of her eye, Cristina spotted the blonde barracuda. "Oh, good grief," she thought. "The bitch is coming over. Why can't she leave us alone?"

Dr. Fielder glided over to Cristina and Owen. "So, you're leaving, Miss Yang?"

"Yes," Cristina said, through gritted teeth.

"Well, I am sure that Dr. Hunt is going to take good care of you at home," she said, smiling. Damn her with her fake smile, Cristina thought.

"Yes, I am. I am going to get my baby all better," he said, as he started pushing the chair again. "Goodbye, Dr. Fielder."

"I hate that bitch," Cristina said, in a low tone, as she folded her arms tightly.

"Well, you certainly made that clear, yesterday," he said, grinning. "You're going home, now, so you won't have to see her."

They rolled out of the hospital and to his car. He helped her into the front passenger seat. He strapped her in. "It's going to be a little uncomfortable until we get home."

They drove home, mostly in silence. She seemed to be deep in thought. He wondered what was occupying her mind so much.

As they got to her house, they made the slow trek to the house and into her bedroom. She got into her bed and he tucked the covers around her. "So you're going to be okay? I have to go back to work. Are you sure that you don't want me to get someone to stay with you?"

"No, I am fine. I think they said that I needed to walk," she said. "Walking helps with the recovery process."

"Well, okay, then," he said, kissing her on the mouth. "I will be back later. I love you, Cristina."

"Yeah, me too," she said, quietly, as he turned to leave. He suddenly turned back. "What did you just say? Was it 'me, too'?" he asked.

She nodded. He smiled. "You said it! Not in the actual words but you said it! You love me!" He looked so ecstatic.

"Yeah, I probably did," she said, trying to act nonchalant. "I love you. Don't make a big deal out of it."

"It is a big deal. Who knew that it was the appearance of the barracuda that would have forced you to finally say it? If I had known this, I would have brought her out sooner," he said, laughing. "So you're claiming your territory?"

"I guess I am," she said, defiantly. "Yes, I definitely am. You are mine! And no barracuda is going to take you away from me!"

"Yes, that's it, baby. No barracuda is going to take me away from you!" he said. He bent down and kissed her again. "Call me if you need anything."

"Yes," she said. She held on to his face and gave him a deep kiss. He looked at her, "You know if you weren't recovering from surgery, other things would be happening."

She laughed. "See you later, Owen." He got up and left, a very contented man.

Cristina reached out and picked up her laptop bag on the side of her bed. She switched on the laptop and went straight to Google. "Let's see what I can find out about Dr. Brenda Fielder," she said to herself.

Dr Fielder was 35 years old and, much to Cristina's chagrin, she had a fine reputation as an orthopedic surgeon. She had gone to Yale and Cornell and had done her residency in New York. She was, by all accounts, a very good surgeon. That was not what Cristina particularly wanted to read. There was nothing untoward revealed about the surgeon on the Internet. "Oh, where is the juicy dirt when you need it?" she thought.

She knew what she had to do. The barracuda had to know that Cristina Yang, despite her diminutive size, was not going to be a pushover. But she had to get better first. There was little she could do while she was in this condition. She had a follow-up appointment at the hospital, next week. That was when she would make her move.

* * *

><p>It was the day of her follow-up appointment. Cristina was for the most part, a lot better. She carefully did her face and brushed out her raven curls. She looked flawless, not that Owen would have noticed, anyway. He thought she looked good with and without make-up. She knew he thought she looked best, naked. He always said that.<p>

As they arrived, Cristina took a glance around. She noticed the barracuda immediately. But the barracuda was not alone, she was laughing hysterically with another doctor – an older male with some slight greying at the temples. She was surprised. Was Dr. Fielder throwing out feelers in all directions? That was the sign of a desperate woman, Cristina thought. She smirked inwardly.

"There's Dr Fielder, Cristina," Owen said, laughing. He knew that would get her all territorial and quite frankly, he really liked it.

"Don't remind me," Cristina said, as she noticed the woman making a beeline towards them. She turned to Owen and suddenly grabbed his face, as she pulled him into the longest, deepest, tonguiest kiss she could muster. He was surprised by her action but he went along with it. After all, Cristina did not indulge in public displays of affection and this must mean something if she was going to do this. He was going to enjoy it as much as possible. She finished off the pose by deftly wrapping one of her legs around his body.

When they finally broke away from each other, they both looked around. "She's gone," Owen said. "I think she got the message. I think you have successfully marked your territory."

"Yeah, I think she got it. Don't feel too sorry for her. She was already chatting up some older dude," Cristina noted.

"Yeah, poor Dr. Withers. By the way, the leg wrap was a nice touch," he said, grinning.

"Yes, I do think so myself," she agreed. They both snickered, as they headed to her appointment, hand in hand.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. Thank you for your comments.**


	16. Chapter 16 The Job Offer

Working with Steve Johnson was amazing. It was perhaps one of the best experiences of her life. As a third year associate, she was learning a lot and she liked that Mr. Johnson was a very upfront guy. There was no intrigue or drama associated with him. He was not conniving or devious like her previous mentor and proved to be just as effective a lawyer.

Mr. Johnson had taken Cristina under his wing for two reasons. He loved teaching her because she had the makings of a brilliant lawyer plus he could look out for her as his best friend's girlfriend. She didn't know about the second part, of course.

In her personal life, things were working out well between her and Owen. They were together for more than a year, now. For Cristina, that was a little more than a record. She usually did not last very long in relationships because the men usually got in the way of her ambition.

Cristina, despite her fairly lowly position, had been making waves in the law firm. She had proven herself to be indispensable to Mr. Johnson. He had allowed her to get her feet fully wet by allowing her to take the lead in a few negotiations. He was impressed at how well she commanded the negotiations, showing herself to be a shrewd and savvy negotiator and always very well-prepared. He was there to give her support in case she got herself in a jam but so far, he did not have the need to do so. The girl was going to be a star.

It was during one of those negotiations that Cristina came up against a formidable team from Trotman & Schneider. Before she entered the room, she had gone to the bathroom and given herself a pep talk.

"Cristina Yang, they are no better than you. You are smart and very well-prepared. Do not let them intimidate you," she said. She took a deep breath, left the bathroom and entered the conference room. She saw the two men from Trotman & Schneider, Mr. John Royce and Mr. Laurence Gatsby, already seated.

She and Mr. Johnson came in together. "Gentlemen, good to see you," Johnson said, shaking the men's hand. "Let me introduce you to my associate Cristina Yang. She will take lead today."

The men from Trotman & Schneider were surprised. This mere slip of a young woman was going to take the lead when one of the partners of the firm was there. This was going to be good, they thought. An absolute cakewalk, Royce thought.

As it turned out, the attorneys from Trotman & Schneider were wrong in their assessment. Cristina turned out to be a much stronger negotiator than they had ever imagined. They had clearly underestimated her. Looks can fool, Royce thought, as he noted that Johnson only interjected now and then to shore up Cristina's arguments. In the end, a very favorable settlement was reached on behalf of Cristina and Johnson's clients. They all shook hands after a heated two hours.

As they turned to leave, Royce turned to Cristina. "That was some fine work, young lady. I didn't really expect that from you."

"Really? Did you underestimate me?" she asked, smiling.

"Yes, I certainly did and I do apologize for that. What year are you?" he asked. "You seem rather young."

"I am third year. I am 28," she said.

"My word, young lady. You do have a very bright future ahead of you. You're extremely talented. Ever think of making the leap to an even bigger law firm in a bigger town. We have a couple of openings in our Los Angeles office and we could use a young up and comer like you," Royce said.

"I am very flattered, Mr. Royce," Cristina started. "I am quite happy here."

"Don't turn me down so fast. I know your firm is a great firm but if you want to be part of an even greater firm, just give me a call. Here is my card," he said. "Give me a call and we can have a chat so we can discuss this career opportunity. I've got a good feeling about you. Bigger salary, bigger bonuses, bigger city, young lady."

"Thank you, Mr. Royce," Cristina said. She shook his hand as he left. Johnson had noted the exchange between Royce and Cristina.

He came to her, "What was that about?"

"Oh," Cristina said. "He just wanted to give me his card." Trying to act nonchalant, she quickly made her way out of the conference room.

Johnson knew that there was more to it than that. He knew that Royce was always on the lookout for hot, young talent and had poached many law firms of their young lawyers to join Trotman & Schneider. Johnson realized he had just given Royce a prime seat to view how talented Cristina really was. He slapped his forehead with his hand. If Royce was successful in luring Cristina away from the law firm, it would probably mean that he was going to place her in LA, where the Trotman & Schneider had its head office. That could also potentially torpedo Cristina and Owen's relationship, if she decided to leave Seattle and move to LA. This was not looking good for him or Owen, Johnson thought. Still, he could not really tell Owen of his suspicions, given that he wasn't even sure that Royce was really trying to recruit Cristina. He had to keep his eyes and ears open.

Cristina went back to her office and stared at the card. Terry came in with a distressed look on her face.

"Good grief, how did you work with that man!" she exclaimed, as she slammed down her notebook and dropped heavily into her chair.

"Who? Parsons? Well, you wanted to work with him," Cristina said. "You got what you asked for."

"Well, apparently, he has been going through law associate after law associate, since you left him and decided to go work for Johnson," Terry said. "The man is a terror. You left him in a really bad state. Nobody else can measure up to you, it seems."

"Naturally," Cristina bragged. "I am the best." She laughed.

"Before I left, he told me to ask you if you wanted to come back and work for him," Terry said. "The audacity of the man; as if I am chopped liver. In any case, whose card are you looking at?"

Cristina got up and closed their office door, before she answered. "Ooh," Terry said. "Is it some big secret?"

"Not a big secret but I need you to keep it quiet and I can't let anyone else around here know this," Cristina said. "You know I had that negotiation thing with the folks from Trotman & Schneider."

"How did that turn out, by the way?" Terry asked.

"Oh, we got a great settlement for our clients," Cristina said. "Well, this is Mr. Royce's card. He thought I was an up and comer and that I was extremely talented. He said they had a few openings at their LA office and to give him a call. So he gave me his card. Told me a bigger city, bigger bonuses, bigger salary."

"Wow, you're being recruited right under Johnson's nose. Now, that is what I call bold," Terry said, chuckling. "If Johnson knew that, he would not be too happy."

"Well, I didn't tell him. He did see Royce give me his card and he asked, so I just told him that Royce just wanted to give me his card and I got out of there like a bat out of hell," she said.

"So, what are you thinking, girl?" Terry asked. "Going to make the move to the City of Angels?"

"It's very tempting," Cristina said. "But there's Owen."

"Ah, your handsome trauma doctor. Now that would certainly give a girl pause," Terry said. "He is a huge consideration in making this decision."

"Yeah, he is. It has been the longest I have ever been in a relationship," Cristina said. "Usually, guys can't take my ambition and they bail. It's different with Owen. He knows how I am and he is still sticking around. The truth is I love him and I know he loves me."

"Well, it's not that bad here, right?" Terry said. She realized she would miss her friend if she left.

"Yes, it's just awesome here. Mr. Johnson has been a fabulous mentor with no hidden agenda. He is teaching me so much and he is allowing me to take the lead in some cases," she said. "He has been very good to me. Plus he is the one that set me up on that blind date with Owen."

"But you're still thinking about that job offer, right? I mean you would have to think about it, seriously. It is a huge opportunity," Terry said.

"Yes, it is," Cristina said. "You know what? Instead of me just wondering here, I think I am going to give him a call. I am really curious."

She dialed Royce's number. "Ah, Mr. Royce, this is Cristina Yang," she said. "Yes, sir. I was wondering whether I could have that discussion.

"Oh, what? You're leaving for LA tonight, so I need to see you today.

"Okay, alright. Drinks at the W, 7 p.m. That is fine, sir. Yes, goodbye. I will see you then."

She hung up the phone. "I feel a little guilty, Terry. I feel like I am cheating on Mr. Johnson and the firm. Also, Owen," Cristina said, shaking her head.

"Oh, you're just going for drinks and listening to what the man has to say. That's it. There is no commitment," Terry encouraged.

* * *

><p>Around 6.30 p.m., Cristina freshened up her make-up, spritzed on some perfume and headed to meet Royce at the W. She had called Owen and told him that she and some of the girls were going out for drinks and she would see him later at her house. She felt bad that she was lying to him about it.<p>

Royce was already there waiting at the bar. "Ah, Miss Yang, good evening. How was your day?" he said, as she sat next to him.

"It was a good day, Mr. Royce, you gave me a lot to think about," Cristina said.

"Some white wine?" he asked. Cristina decided to decline.

"No thanks, just some water is fine," she told the bartender.

"Okay, well since your call, I have been doing some research on you. You played a key role in the Chartwell settlement. That was a huge case. You worked with Parsons on that," he said. "People have said some really good things about you."

"Yes, I did. Probably the biggest case I have ever worked on," Cristina said. "We got a great settlement for them."

"That was fabulous work," Royce said. "You are exactly the kind of young lawyer we are looking for at Trotman & Schneider.

"I also made some discreet enquiries on the kind of packages that your firm currently offers someone like you. I am prepared to offer you a 35 per cent boost in your salary. Your bonus will be tied to performance. We're going to offer you a number of allowances like housing, entertainment, travel, vehicle maintenance, full health benefits, 20 paid days of vacation leave," he said. "Also, you will get a one time payment for settlement in a new city. Well, what do you think?"

"That sounds really fabulous, sir," Cristina started. She was starting to feel a little overwhelmed by the fact that she was being pursued this aggressively.

"Well, you think about it. I am heading out to the airport, now. Good to meet you, Miss Yang. I hope I will be hearing from you," Royce said, as they shook hands.

Cristina sat there for five minutes, thinking about it. "More water, miss?" the bartender asked.

"Vodka tonic," she said. She had a lot to think about.

* * *

><p>Owen was already in bed by the time she came home. He had a long day at the hospital and was tired. She watched him sleep. She went to the bathroom and tried to take a relaxing bath but there was so many competing thoughts vying for her brain's attention. After her bath, she brushed her teeth, absentmindedly, still thinking about Mr. Royce's offer. She changed into a nightshirt and snuggled up next to Owen.<p>

He pulled her closer to him. "How was the night out with the girls?"

"Good," she said. "Anything interesting happened in work, today?"

"The usual. Car accident, man fell off a telephone pole, guy fell off his roof," he said. "What about you?"

"Um, we got a great settlement for our client," she said.

"Okay, that's good. Anything else?" he asked, sleepily.

"No, nothing else major happened," she said.

"Alright," he said, as he gave her a kiss before closing his eyes and going back to sleep.

Cristina stared at the ceiling, unable to sleep, as the thoughts continued to flood her brain.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. Thank you for your comments.**


	17. Chapter 17 Stay or go

She woke up the next morning after a rather restless night of sleep. She looked over at her sleeping companion. She pushed off her covers to go to the bathroom but found herself being pulled back in to the soft plushness of the bed.

"Don't go," he said, pulling her closer to him, as he buried his face in her hair.

"Okay, I will stay for two minutes," she said. They lay together in companionable silence, snuggling against each other.

After a while, she struggled to get out of his arms. "I really have to go the bathroom, now. I need to pee." He groaned, as he released her from his arms.

He found her very quiet, as they got ready to go to work. They grabbed some breakfast on the way and he dropped her off to work. She seemed quite lost in her thoughts; he wondered if something at work was bothering her because nothing seemed to be wrong at home. He made a mental note to himself to discuss it with Steve, when they met for their lunch time workout, later that day.

"Bye, honey," she said, as she gave him a brief kiss on the lips, before exiting the car.

"Bye, babe," he said, as he watched her enter her building. He drove off to the hospital, still thinking about it.

* * *

><p>Cristina sat at her desk, still thinking about the job offer from Trotman &amp; Schneider. Her thoughts were interrupted by Terry, who came into the office, groaning.<p>

"Parsons, again?" Cristina asked.

"Who else?" Terry said. "I will soon ask to be assigned to someone else. The man is a nightmare. Hey, so how was your meeting with Royce from Trotman & Schneider?"

"Keep your voice down. These walls could have ears," Cristina said. "It went very well. He offered me a 35 percent raise in salary plus a whole lot of benefits."

"That sounds terrific. So you're going to take it, right? It is a huge opportunity that can't be passed up. I mean, this firm is great but it is a smaller firm," Terry said. "Think of some of the cases in LA."

"Yeah, but Mr. Johnson has been so amazing to me, teaching me. If it wasn't for him, they wouldn't have noticed me. He gave me the opportunity to shine," Cristina said. "But giving up this job is not the biggest problem. The biggest problem sleeps in my bed."

"Trauma doc," Shauna said. "Well, you certainly have quite a few things going for you here."

"Yeah, going to think long and hard about it," Cristina said.

There was a knock on the door. The women became silent when they realized it was Steve Johnson.

"Hmm, I didn't know I had that effect to silence a room like this," Johnson said. "Cristina, can I see you in my office?"

"Certainly, Mr. Johnson," she said, picking up her notebook. She quickly followed him to his huge corner office with the wall to ceiling windows.

She stared out at the glorious view. She could see the Space Needle clearly from this office. She wondered when she could ever get an office like this. Maybe this job opportunity would be the fast track to something like this.

"Wondering when you can get an office like this?" Johnson said, as he watched her looking at the view. Did Johnson have ESP, she thought. How the heck did he know what she was thinking?

"So, Cristina, what do you think about your future at our firm?" he asked. "Do you like it here? Do you see yourself here for another 10 years? You are a very smart and intelligent woman, savvy negotiator, impeccable research skills. We would be fools to let someone like you go."

Did Johnson hear something about her job offer, she wondered. How could that possibly be? Was he fishing for something so that she would spill about the job offer?

She answered, "I really do like it here a lot, Mr. Johnson. The firm has given me countless opportunities and you, in particular, have shown great faith in me. You have also taught me a lot. Since I have been working closely, I think I have enjoyed my time here, the most. Even Mr. Parsons taught me quite a few things, when I worked with him. For all of that, I am very grateful."

"I am happy to hear all of that," Johnson said. "We love to nurture young talent here and I hope you do remember that."

It was clear to Cristina that Johnson had some inkling about Royce's job offer. Maybe she should come clean about the offer, give Johnson a chance to give a counter-offer, she thought. She was still mulling this when Johnson made a comment that shocked her a little.

"So how did your meeting with Royce go?" he said. He wasn't going to beat around the bush, anymore. He knew Royce was a predator when it came to stealing young talent from other firms. He was aware of his modus operandi. "There's no use in denying it, Cristina. I know Mr. Royce very well. He has been an adversary of mine for the past 15 years in the courtroom and across the negotiating table. When I saw him give you his business card, I knew immediately he was trying to recruit you."

"Um…," Cristina started. It made no sense to pretend that there had been no meeting. "Yes, I did have a brief meeting with Mr. Royce before he left for LA at his hotel. He did offer me a job at Trotman & Schneider."

"Well, okay then. And what did Mr. Royce offer you?" Johnson asked, leaning back into his chair.

"A 35 percent bump in salary plus a whole lot of allowances like housing, entertainment, travel, vehicle maintenance, health benefits and 20 paid days of vacation ," she said, quietly. She felt a little ashamed because Johnson and the firm had been so good to her.

"Hmm, that is very generous of them," Johnson said. "I am not sure we can match his offer, given that we are a smaller firm but I will see what I can do. We would like to keep you here, Cristina."

"Thank you, sir. Will that be all?" she asked.

"No, I want to discuss a new case with you," he said, opening a folder.

"Alright," Cristina said, opening her notebook, ready to get to work.

* * *

><p>Johnson met up with Owen at the gym during their lunchtime training session.<p>

"Hey, Owen, how are you doing today?' Johnson asked.

"I'm okay," Owen said. "Hey, Steve, is anything going on with Cristina at work? She has been a little bit quiet. It's like she is thinking about something."

"Work-wise, everything is okay. She's doing a fantastic job. However, there have been efforts to poach her away from us," Johnson said, climbing on to the treadmill.

"What? She didn't mention any of this to me," Owen said. "When did this happen?"

"Oh, I am pretty sure it happened yesterday. We had a negotiation with Royce from Trotman & Schneider. That is a firm out in LA. Stupid me gave him a front row seat to look at Cristina's skills and apparently, he has made a job offer," Johnson said.

"You're not going to let that happen, are you?" Owen said.

"I am going to try my best to come up with a competitive offer but they are a larger firm and they do have greater resources," Johnson said.

"Are you trying to tell me that my girlfriend could be moving to another state?" Owen said.

"Well, I am doing my best for that not to happen, Owen," Johnson said. "Both of us have a lot to lose. She is one of the best young lawyers I have come across in a long time. She is going to be a star. And I am also on your side. We both have a lot at stake, here."

* * *

><p>Cristina found herself, facing another late day, as she tried to finish up some work for Mr. Johnson. She hadn't heard from Owen for most of the day. She figured he was probably tied up in surgery.<p>

Her phone rang – it was Mr. Royce. She took a deep breath before she answered.

"Good evening, Mr. Royce. How are you?" she said.

"Ms. Yang, I trust that you have given our offer a lot of thought," he said.

"Yes, sir, I have. It is indeed a very generous offer," Cristina said.

"Well, just needed to let you know that we have another candidate in mind for the position but you are our first choice. So I am going to have to give you a deadline to accept our offer," he said. "We need to know by Friday if you will be joining us in LA."

"Okay, sir, that will be fine. I will have an answer for you by then," she said.

"Good. I hope that your answer will be one that I would like to hear," Royce said. "Good evening, Ms. Yang."

"Good evening, sir," Cristina said, before hanging up the phone.

"So that was Royce?" Johnson said, standing at her open doorway. She was startled by Johnson's sudden appearance.

"Yes, it was," she said. She had no reason to hide anything from him. "He told me that I had until Friday to give him an answer to his offer."

"I see," Johnson said. "Just to let you know, having discussed everything with HR and the other partners, I will have a counter-offer ready for you by tomorrow morning."

"Thank you, sir. I am most appreciative of what you are trying to do for me," Cristina said.

"Well, we can't lose an asset like you. It is good business that we try our best to keep you," Johnson said.

"That's very flattering of you to say, Mr. Johnson," Cristina said.

"Why don't you go home? You can finish that up in the morning," Johnson said.

"Okay, thank you, I will," Cristina said. "Good evening, Mr. Johnson."

"Yes, good evening, Cristina. Have a good night," Johnson said, as he left.

She packed up her papers and her computer, before picking up her handbag to leave. She took a cab home. She was surprised to find that Owen was not there. She wondered if he was working late. She decided to give him a call.

"Hello," she heard his deep voice say.

"Hey, it's me. I thought you were going to be at my place, tonight," she said. "Are you at home?"

"Yes, I am home. I do have an apartment, you know," he said. He had such a strange tone to his voice, she thought.

"I know that. I just thought you were going to be here," she said. "Do you want me to come over? I need to talk to you."

"If you wish," he said. He didn't sound particularly enthusiastic, she thought.

"Yeah, I will just take a shower and I will be there in a bit," she said.

An hour later found Cristina at Owen's apartment. She used her key and was surprised to find dinner already put out on the table, with two candles and fresh flowers as a centerpiece. Soft music played in the background. This was not what she expected, especially since he had answered her, so strangely, when she had called him earlier. The truth was that he had been peeved because she hadn't mentioned the offer before but since she was going to discuss with him, he felt a little bit of romance could help his case, if she was seriously considering the offer.

"Hey," she said. "What is this all about? The candles, the flowers?" She went and gave him a hug.

"It's only spaghetti and meatballs but I thought I would make it all nice and romantic," he said.

"Well, your efforts are greatly appreciated," she said. "I am very hungry."

"Have a seat," he said, as he pulled out her chair for her.

He went into the kitchen and brought out their plates. He poured out some wine in their glasses.

As they sat down to eat, he asked, "So what do you need to speak to me about?" He knew the answer but he wanted her to tell him.

"I guess I might as well just come out and say it," she said. "I have been offered a job by a bigger law firm, based in LA."

"I see," he said. "And what do you think about this offer?"

"Well, it's very tempting. Much better package than what I am getting at my firm, right now," she said. "Also, it is an opportunity to work in a larger city."

"I see," he said. "And what are your plans?"

"I already had a discussion with Mr. Johnson about it and he says that he will try to better my package that I currently have but he could not promise he could match Schneider & Trotman with their offer," she said.

"So, you are seriously considering this offer?" he asked. She nodded, tentatively. "It is an amazing opportunity," she said.

"And where does that leave us?" he continued. "You know I have two years left on my contract at Seattle Grace and therefore, I can't leave." She nodded, again.

"Well, we could do a long-distance relationship," she said. "See each other like twice a month. I can fly up and you can fly down."

He blinked once, he blinked twice. He reached over and took her hand into his. "I don't do long-distance relationships. I tried that once before and it didn't work. We both just drifted apart as we got more and more into our own lives. If I am in a relationship with someone, I want them to be there with me. As much as I love you, Cristina, I do not want to live like that, where we see each other twice a month. That's not going to happen."

"So what are you saying? If I take this job, we are over?" she said.

"I think it would be best not to continue the relationship," he said. "I am sorry but that is how I feel. I am not going to stop you if you decide to leave. It will hurt me, I cannot lie about that. So it is your decision – stay or go."

Cristina looked at him with tears in her eyes.

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><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. Thank you for your thoughts.**


	18. Chapter 18 Contemplation

Cristina tried to blink away the tears but she couldn't. She pushed away the plate and dropped the fork. She got up from the table.

"I think I better go," she said, walking towards the sofa to pick up her handbag and coat. She made her way to the front door.

"I'm not asking you to go," Owen said, getting up and following her. He held on to her hand. She had wanted to get out of there before the tears started rolling down her face.

"I need to go. I need some time to think," she said, her voice trembling with emotion.

"Okay," he said. He knew he had dropped a bombshell on her, by giving her this ultimatum. He felt bad because he made her feel this way. But he knew he didn't regret it. It was the way he felt. He was not prepared to have a relationship with someone, who lived thousands of miles away. He didn't want a twice a month relationship. He wanted that person to be there with him. He was now 36 and wanted to settle down with someone, permanently.

Before she left, she turned and said, "I will call you and let you know what I decide."

He looked at her, sadly and said, "Okay." As she closed the door, he picked up her half-eaten plate of spaghetti and meatballs and threw it away. He didn't feel like eating, anymore, so he dumped his meal, too. He drained his glass of wine and decided to go to bed. As he brushed his teeth, he stared at himself in the mirror. He hoped he was doing the right thing. As he lay on his bed, he wondered what Cristina was doing. Without his ultimatum, he knew she would have probably stayed the night and would have been in his arms. He closed his eyes but sleep never came.

Cristina arrived at her house, feeling depressed. She had cried all of the way home. She kicked off her shoes and threw her handbag on the sofa. She then flopped into her bed, still mulling Owen's ultimatum. On the one hand, she knew she loved Owen. She had hoped he would have been more understanding but she completely saw his point of view. On the other hand, this was an opportunity that could put her career on the fast track. She was a Californian girl and she knew the state. It would be for her, a chance to go back home.

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><p>It was a restless night and when she went to work the next day, her lack of sleep showed on her face.<p>

"Good Lord, you look terrible," Terry said. "You have dark circles under your eyes. You never have dark circles under your eyes."

"I had a bad night," Cristina said. "I was thinking all night. I was given an ultimatum by Owen. He said that if I took the job in LA, then our relationship would be over."

"Ooh, that was harsh," Terry said. "That gives you a lot to think about."

"Yeah, well I do understand where he's coming from. He's older, well-established already. Heck, he is in charge of his whole department there at the hospital. I am just three years into this job. He doesn't want to have a long-distance relationship," Cristina said, sighing.

"Okay, so what are you going to do?" Terry asked. "You do have compelling reasons to stay here, as well as reasons to leave."

"Yeah, I know," Cristina said. There was a knock on their open door.

"Good morning, Cristina, Terry. How are you, this morning?" Johnson said at their doorway. He was smiling broadly. "Cristina, can I see you in my office?"

"Certainly, sir," Cristina said, picking up her notebook. She followed him down the corridor and into his luxurious office.

She took a seat. "With regards to the assignment yesterday, I have completed most of the research work. I just need to type up some of my notes."

"I didn't ask you here to talk about the case, Cristina, even though I am glad you have made faster progress than I expected," Johnson said. He pulled out a folder. "In my hand, I have an official proposal from the company about improving your package here. HR worked on this yesterday. I hope you can look on it, rather favorably."

"Thank you, sir," Cristina said, as she accepted the folder from him. She was eager to see what was going to be offered.

"As you can see, we cannot match the 35 per cent bump in salary but we can offer a 25 per cent increase in salary. The document also includes all of the allowances that Trotman & Schneider offered you. So, we hope that you think about this carefully, Cristina," Johnson said. "We think you can have an amazing career at our firm."

"Thank you, sir," Cristina said. "Will that be all? Or do you need to discuss anything, work-wise?"

"No, no," Johnson said. "You can email me your research. And please, let me know, as soon as possible, what you decide, regarding our offer."

"Yes, sir, I will," Cristina said. She left the office and headed back to her own office.

"So what happened?" Terry asked.

"Take a look," Cristina said, handing her friend the folder.

"Wow, this is great," Terry said, as she read through the document.

"Yeah, I know. The money is 10 per cent less but the rest of it almost matches the other offer," Cristina said.

"So when do you have to give Trotman & Schneider an answer?" Terry asked.

"Friday," Cristina said. "The day I decide whether I am going to change my life, drastically." She put everything out of her mind, as she turned on her computer to finish a brief.

* * *

><p>At lunchtime, Owen and Steve met at the gym. "You look like you haven't slept very well," Steve said.<p>

"I haven't," Owen said. "Cristina and I had a discussion last night about her job offer."

"And I guess it didn't go all that well, judging from the bags under your eyes," Steve said.

"Not really, I gave her an ultimatum. I told her that I wasn't into long-distance relationships and if she was going to LA, then it was probably best to end the relationship," Owen said. Steve's jaw dropped open. He looked to be in a state of shock.

"Steve?" Owen said. "Say something."

"Uh," Steve said. "Wow, that was severe. I am a little surprised. I know you love the girl."

"Yes, I do," Owen said. "But a long-distance relationship is not in the cards for me. I am 36. I need a stable relationship, not one that has me traipsing up and down the west coast every two weeks for two years. I can't leave the hospital for another two years because of my contract. Is it so bad that I want to be able to see my girlfriend, every day? Am I such a monster that I gave her this ultimatum?"

"No, I can understand. I gave her our firm's offer today. We can't match the salary but we were able to make good on the allowances part," Steve said.

"You think she will take it?" Owen asked, anxiously.

"I don't know but the ball is now in her court," Steve said, as he stepped on to the treadmill.

"Yeah, I guess it is," Owen said.

* * *

><p>After work, Cristina headed to her house. She hadn't spoken to Owen for the entire day. She felt it was best. She needed to have a clear head to consider her options and having Owen around would just cloud her thoughts. She went straight to the shower. The warm water was soothing to her heated brain.<p>

Owen was alone in his apartment. He had not heard from Cristina for the day. That was different because he usually would get a call from her at least twice during the workday. He would also call her, twice but he knew she had needed some space to think. But it was killing him now, as he sat there alone in his apartment , eating some Chinese food he had picked up on the way home. It was from his favorite Chinese take-out place and yet, he found himself unable to enjoy it, as he normally did. If she was there, she would be sitting across the table from him, chopsticks in hand, with one leg tucked under the other. He smiled as he thought of her face, smiling across the table from him.

"Oh, screw this," he said, putting down his chopsticks. He picked up his phone and dialed her number. Usually, she would answer after two rings but the phone went to five rings before the voice mail came on. He contemplated leaving a message but in the end, he chose not to do so. Maybe she was still not ready to talk to him, he thought, and that is why she did not answer the phone.

In reality, Cristina was still taking an extra-long shower. She hadn't heard her phone ringing. When she finally got out of the shower, she changed into her pajamas and just hit the bed. She was so tired from her sleepless night. She didn't even feel like eating the Chinese food she had brought home. She had gone to that place that Owen liked so much because it reminded her of him. Little did either of them know that they had missed each other by five minutes at the Chinese place.

She stared up at her ceiling fan. Tomorrow was Friday, the day that Trotman & Schneider expected to hear from her. She needed to make a final decision. She closed her eyes for what she thought would be five minutes. Exhaustion, however, kicked in and she fell asleep for eight hours. When her alarm woke her up the next morning, Cristina was surprised. It felt like she had just gone to sleep. "Oh no," she thought. "D-day for me."

* * *

><p>She headed out to work. She sat at her desk, picked up the phone and started to dial Royce's number. She had only dialed four numbers when she hung up the phone. She was totally torn between her love for Owen and her ambition. She did not know what to do. She tried the number again and chickened out before she could finish dial the number.<p>

She knew what she had to do. She had to call Owen before she made this call to Royce. That was why she was unable to call Royce. She needed to find out if he thought they had a future together. They had talked about being committed to each other, especially after the terrible period when they had that break from each other. But they never really talked about the future – marriage, kids, a life together.

She called his number. He answered, quickly. He had not even looked at the screen to see who was calling. "Hunt, here," he said.

"Hey, it's me," she said, quietly.

"Hey, you," he said, glad to hear her voice. "I called you last night but you didn't answer."

"Oh, I probably didn't hear it. I hit the sack as soon I came out of the shower. I didn't even eat the Chinese food I bought from that place you like so much. I had to dump it, this morning," she said.

"You were at the Chinese place?" he chuckled. "What a coincidence. So was I. Maybe we just missed each other."

"Yeah, I guess," she said. "Great minds think alike."

"So, is there a reason you called?" he asked, knowing full well that she was going to talk about her job offer.

"Yeah, today is my deadline from Trotman & Schneider. They need to know whether I will be taking that job in LA," she said.

"Oh," he said, expecting the worst. She could hear the sadness in his voice from that one word.

"I haven't called them as yet because I needed to talk to you, Owen," she said. "This is important for me to know. I need to ask you a question because we have never ever discussed this before."

"Okay," he said. "Ask away."

"I know you love me but do you see a future for us, together? I mean, we have been together for over a year, now and we have never really asked each other that question," Cristina asked. "Do you see me in your life?"

"Cristina, we've never talked about it but I always thought you already knew that. Of course, I see a future with you. I have always envisioned a future with you. Me, you, a big house, three, four, five kids, a golden retriever, a mini-van, the whole shebang," he said. "I can see it as clearly as I can see that there are two nurses arguing in front of me."

She laughed, as she had a vision of the arguing nurses. "So you want to be with me?" she said.

"Yes, Cristina, I want to be with you. This is why I don't want you to leave. This is why I gave you the ultimatum. I want you here with me, all of the time. If you took the job, then it would be clear to me that you don't want the same things that I do," he said. "And maybe, I needed to find someone else who did want the same things."

"Oh," she said, cringing at the idea of Owen being with someone else. "Thank you for telling me this."

"Okay," he said. "I love you."

"Yeah, I love you, too," she said. "Bye." She hung up the phone. She was going to call Royce but she was called to an urgent meeting with a client. She did not have a minute to breathe for the rest of the day but when she looked at her watch, she could see it was close to 5 p.m. She needed to make this call now.

She sat down, closed the office door, took out Royce's business card. She took a deep breath before she dialed the number. Royce answered after three rings.

"Hello, this is Royce," she heard his deep voice.

"Good evening, sir. This is Cristina Yang. I have made up my mind about the job offer."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. Reviews are love. Muchas gracias.**


	19. Chapter 19 Farewell

**A/N: Yes, I know. I have neglected this story. I had a hard time figuring out what to do. Now that I have, hopefully, it will be easier for me to write.**

* * *

><p>"Yes, Mr. Royce, I will be taking the job," she said. It hurt her as she said it because she was thinking about Owen. She knew that she was going to hurt him, terribly but this was an opportunity she could not pass up, if she wanted to further her career.<p>

She was ambitious, she knew that. She also knew that she was exceedingly good at her job. If she wanted to be a major player, she needed to be in the really big leagues and the move to LA would allow her that chance.

"Good, good," Mr. Royce said. "I will have my assistant call you to make arrangements for you to start here as soon as you can give notice at your firm."

"Thank you, sir," she said. She hung up the phone, feeling a little strange. With that one phone call, she had effectively closed one chapter of her life. However, that chapter she had just closed also included Owen. She knew by taking this job, she and Owen were essentially over.

She felt weird. A strange mix of excitement and sadness tinged with regret. All she could do was think about Owen and how he would take the news. She knew Owen had poured out his heart to her about what the life he had envisioned and their future together. The thing is she was not ready for that. She wanted to focus on her career; marriage and children were not in the cards, at least not for a few years. She dreaded having to tell him.

She spent the rest of the weekend, deep in her own thoughts. She had not called Owen and he had not called her. He was giving her the space that she needed to make her own decisions. Little did he know that she had already made it and he was in the dark about it. He had to work on the weekend and there were many accidents that kept him busy in the OR. He had thought about her but he was too exhausted and had fallen asleep in the on-call room.

* * *

><p>On Monday morning, Cristina went to Mr. Johnson's office and handed him her resignation letter.<p>

"Is this what I think it is?" he asked.

"Yes," she said. "It is two weeks' notice."

"We're very sorry to see you go, Cristina," Johnson said. He had half-expected that this would be the outcome. This was an opportunity that many young lawyers would dream about. "You know, Cristina, that you will always have a place with us, if things don't work out for you in LA."

"Thank you for that, sir. That is very generous of you," she said.

"Well, we think of you as one of our brightest young stars," he said.

"Thank you for having so much faith in me. I am so grateful for all you have taught me. But I think it might be time to spread my wings and find out if I can perform, elsewhere," she said.

He paused before he asked his next question. "Does he know as yet?"

She shook her head. "I am dreading it." That was all they both said on the matter. They both shook hands. "Good luck, Cristina."

"Thank you, sir," she said, before she left his office. She went back to his office and sunk heavily into her chair. She needed to speak to Owen.

She called him, "Hi, Owen."

"Hey," he said. "I have not seen you all weekend. Not that I could have. I was swamped here at the hospital. Two of the ER doctors fell sick and I had to pull double duty here on both days."

"Will you be home this evening?" she asked. "I would like to come over."

"Yes," he said. "Do you want me to get dinner?"

"Um, no, it's okay. You don't have to do anything special," she said. "I just want to talk."

"Okay," he said. "Come around seven."

"That's fine," she said. "Bye. Have a good day."

"You, too," he said. He found that she sounded strange. He had a feeling what she was going to tell him but he did not want to believe it. He tried to put it out of his mind. He decided he was still going to grab some dinner for when she came over.

* * *

><p>Later that evening, he had fixed up his dining table with candles and flowers and two place settings. Even though it was just take-out, he was going to dress it up as nicely as possible. He heard the doorbell. He knew it was her.<p>

"Hey," he said, opening the door. "Why didn't you use your key?"

"Oh, I forgot I had it," she said. She looked at the flowers and the candles on the dining table. She felt doubly bad about what she was going to say. "You didn't have to do any of that."

"I thought you would want to have a nice dinner," he said. "After all, I didn't see you all weekend."

She knew she had to say something before it got any further.

"Owen, I have something to tell you," she said. He looked at her, he could see it in her eyes.

"Just say what you have to say," he said, the hurt was already welling up in him.

"I have decided to take the job in LA," she said.

He sat down. "So nothing I said made any difference to you," he said. "This year that we have been together has all been for naught. I was hoping that this relationship was leading somewhere. But it seems I was mistaken."

"Owen, this did mean something to me," she pleaded. "I love you."

"If you loved me, then you wouldn't be doing this," he said. "You know this means that we are over. The ultimatum still stands. I am not prepared for a long-distance relationship. I am not going to do that."

"Owen, please," she said, a single tear rolled down her cheek.

"Go away. Leave my apartment. If you don't want me, then you shouldn't be here," he said, his voice was cracking. He could feel the tears coming. He didn't want her to see him crying over this.

"Goodbye, Owen," she said, crying as she hurriedly left his apartment, but not before leaving his apartment key on the table. As soon as she had closed the door, he fell to his knees and wept.

* * *

><p>The next two weeks found Cristina in a daze, as she tried to clear up her outstanding work at the office. She and Owen no longer had any contact with each other. Steve Johnson could see how she was suffering, as well as how badly Owen was taking it. Though he and Owen still met for their workouts, he noticed the change in Owen. He had become withdrawn and just concentrated on working out as hard as he could. Steve had tried to bring up the topic of Cristina just once but Owen had given him such a glare, that he knew that she was not to be spoken about. "Do not mention her to me again," was all that Owen said.<p>

The firm threw a going away party for Cristina at the office. There were drinks and food and a cake which said, "Good luck, Cristina." Cristina tried to act happy but it was all a façade. She accepted everyone's congratulations and smiled bravely through it all. Later, she packed up her office. As she closed the office door, she remembered all of the good times that she and Terry had shared in that office. Melinda, a new law associate, was going to move in there with Terry. She had met Melinda at her going away party. She seemed nice enough, Cristina thought.

Later that night, she was packing up her personal belongings to put them in storage. She wasn't carrying much with her to LA. She was going to rent out her house, fully furnished. The new tenant had already signed a six-month lease on the place. There was a picture of her and Owen on the mantel. She stared at it and wondered if to put it in storage. In the end, she put the picture in her suitcase to take with her to LA. He may not want to remember her, she thought but she definitely wanted to remember him.

* * *

><p>Two days later, she had handed over the keys to the new tenant and stepped on a plane to LA with just two suitcases. She was met by another law associate at her new firm, who took her to the apartment they had found for her. It was a lovely two-bedroom apartment, which was fully furnished. This was going to be her new home.<p>

As she unpacked her clothes in the huge walk-in closet and put away her suitcases, she finally realized the full magnitude of what she had done. She had uprooted her entire life and had given up what had been the most significant relationship in her life. She lay on the floor and stared up at the ceiling. She began to cry, as she wondered whether she was making the biggest mistake of her life.

She looked at the picture of Owen and herself, which she had placed on the bedside table. She got up, took up the picture and traced the outline of his face with her finger. She had loved him. Hell, she still loved him. She was overcome with an overwhelming desire to call him but she restrained herself. It was better this way. He probably didn't want to hear from her, anymore.

Cristina settled down, quickly at Trotman & Schneider. They had decided to test her on a really big case, assisting one of the law partners. She showed off the fine research and negotiating skills that she had learned from her three years at Rosenblatt, Withers & Johnson. Everyone was indeed impressed by her and she was assigned one major case after the other. Her professional life was thriving but her personal life, not so much.

She tried dating again. She had several dates with four different guys, each of them attractive, accomplished, educated professionals. Yet she found herself, comparing them to Owen, and had found them lacking. She was quick to find fault with them, so she would not accept a second date from them.

It was the same for Owen. He tried dating again and found himself, getting more and more despondent with each new date. He could not help but think of Cristina, even though it was unfair to the women he had asked out. He never asked anybody for a second date and the women were baffled by it because as far as they were concerned, it was a good date. He buried himself in his work but sometimes, late at night, when he was alone in the on-call room, he would dream that he was making love to the woman with the dark, curly hair. When he would awaken, he would find himself disappointed that it was all a dream.

After six months in LA, Cristina's professional life was all she had. It was probably good that she was doing so well, but in her personal life, she felt so lonely. There was no one in her life and it was sad that she had to come home to an empty apartment. She often thought about Owen and what she had lost, when the relationship ended. She was becoming sick of this lonely life in LA. So she made up her mind, she was going to get back what she lost.

* * *

><p>The next day, she called Mr. Johnson and asked if his offer still stood. Could she come back to her old job? He asked her if things were going alright for her, professionally. She said she was doing well at her job but there was something missing in her life. Steve knew immediately what she was talking about. He told her she had her job back and that his last package offer stood. She thanked him, profusely for his generosity. The next day, she gave notice at Trotman &amp; Schneider. Everyone was totally shocked, since Cristina had already established herself as a rising star.<p>

When she left two weeks later, one of her colleagues saw her, packing up her desk and asked her why she was leaving, when everything was going her way at the firm. Cristina looked at her, "I just realized that there is more to life than career and ambition." She headed back to Seattle, the next day, with the two suitcases than she had left with. Her tenant had vacated her house and she was now back, safely ensconced in her home.

She started work, the following Monday. She no longer had to share an office with Terry, as she now got her own office. She was busy unpacking when Johnson came by and knocked on her open door.

"Welcome back, Cristina. I hope you found your office much to your liking," he said.

"Yes, thank you, it is great," she said. "I don't have to share, anymore. I just want to thank you, again, sir for all you have done for me."

"Well, I always hoped you would come back to us, Cristina, because we know you have a very bright future," Johnson said. He decided to ask the question, "Does he know that you are back?"

She shook her head. "No, I haven't contacted him," she said. Johnson left her office. At midday, he was going to meet Owen for their daily workout.

Owen was his usual dour self, as he concentrated on working out as hard as he can. Steve wondered if he should tell him. He knew his friend had been deeply hurt by Cristina and as a result, he had become quite bitter about it. Steve was certain that Owen still loved the girl, despite all of his protestations that he did not want to talk about her. He made up his mind to tell him.

"Do you know who is back?" Steve said.

"Gosh, Steve. That could be anybody. Please don't make me guess. I am too old to play guessing games with you," Owen said, in an exasperated tone.

"Okay, SHE's back. Started back at the firm, today," Steve said. He examined Owen's face to gauge his reaction. He saw the change, immediately. First of all, it was a look of joy, then sadness, then anger.

"I don't want to know," Owen said. "She ripped my heart out and stomped on it, Steve. She broke me, Steve." He went back to running on the treadmill.

Steve let out a sharp breath. If Cristina had come back to win Owen's love again, she was going to have an uphill climb.

Back at the office, Cristina decided to give Owen a call, to let him know she was back. All she got was voice mail.

"Um, Owen, hi. It's me, Cristina. I am back in Seattle. I was wondering if you wanted to talk. If you do, please call me. Anyway, have a good day. Bye."

That was her first attempt to reconcile. She knew it was going to be a battle to get him back. The next step would have to be his move. She would have to wait for his call.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. It helps me to want to continue.**


	20. Chapter 20 Giving up

When Owen got back to the hospital, he listened to all of his messages. Most of the messages were hospital-related, one was from the drycleaners, saying his suits were ready and there was one last message. It was from Cristina. His breath caught in his throat, when he heard her voice. He had not heard her voice in six months. He listened to the message three more times. Then he saved it. But he did not call her. He was not yet ready to deal with her.

Two weeks passed and Cristina wondered if Owen was going to call her. Maybe he didn't get the message, she rationalized, even though she knew that it probably wasn't true. She decided to call again. Maybe, this time, he would answer. To her disappointment, she got the voice mail, again.

"Um, hi, Owen. I don't know if you got the last message I left. I am back in town and I was wondering whether you wanted to talk or something. Please give me a call. Thanks," she said. She hung up. Then, she called again and left a second message. "My phone number is the same, in case you were wondering. Well, okay then."

Owen had been rather busy that day – it had been a hectic day in the pit. There was a multiple motor vehicle accident and there were several victims. After a full day of surgery, he finally checked his messages. He stopped breathing when he heard her voice. He listened to both messages several times. He saved the two messages. He did not call her, though.

Another two weeks passed. She wondered if she should call again. Her last two attempts to contact him were all for naught. She had not heard from him. She stood there, staring at his number, wondering whether to contact him.

"Cristina," Johnson said from her office doorway. She was startled. She dropped her phone on her desk.

"I am sorry," he said, when he recognized that he had scared her.

"It's okay," she said. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Um, yes, can you come to my office in about half an hour? I have a new client coming in," he said. He looked at the phone on her desk and saw Owen's name and number on the screen. It seemed like she was going to call Owen, when he came in. Johnson knew that she had left Owen a couple of messages but he had not yet returned her call. He felt sorry for her but he knew Owen was still hurting over how she had left.

He really knew that it was none of his business but he had to ask. "No luck with Hunt, as yet?" he said.

She shook her head. "It seems that he doesn't want to talk to me. I left him a message, a month ago and another one, two weeks ago, and I keep checking my phone to see if I have any missed calls but none was from him."

"So what are you going to do?" Johnson asked. He really would like to see Owen and Cristina back together. He knew that his friend was still in love with the girl, but Owen's stubbornness was getting in the way of them getting back together.

"Well, it seems that he doesn't want to talk to me. I guess he doesn't want to have anything to do with me," Cristina said. "I really don't blame him. I guess he is sending me a message that there is nothing left to hope for. I am probably just kidding myself that we could work it out."

"So does this mean you are giving up?" Johnson was alarmed. Just yesterday in the gym, Owen had asked how Cristina was doing. That was certainly a change from a month ago, when he didn't want to hear anything about her.

"Yeah, I am giving up," she said. "I better start dating, again. It's no use saving myself for someone who doesn't want me."

Alarm bells were going off in Johnson's head. Owen was completely going to lose her.

"You shouldn't give up, so easily," Johnson said. "You are a tenacious, little fighter."

"In the courtroom or the negotiating table, maybe," she said. "Maybe not so much in my love life. It hurts too much." Johnson watched as Cristina picked up her phone and deleted Owen's phone number out of her contacts list. That was something he did not expect to see.

It was clear to Steve that Owen needed to call Cristina as soon as possible. She was starting to walk away. He was going to shake some sense into his friend, when he saw him, today.

"So I will see you in half an hour. The client is Jonas Larson of Larson Stores. He is facing a class action suit from female employees at his stores in Portland that that they were sexually discriminated against and passed over for promotions," Johnson said.

"Ooh, that is not going to be an easy case," Cristina said.

"I know," Johnson said. "If it is not looking good for our side, we may have to do an out-of-court settlement."

"Okay, well, I will see you in a bit," she said.

Twenty minutes later, Cristina was in Johnson's office, awaiting Mr. Jonas Larson. The silver-haired gentleman, along with a younger, handsomer, dark-haired version of Mr. Larson, were ushered into Johnson's office by his secretary.

Both Cristina and Johnson stood up to shake the men's hands.

"Good to see you, Mr Larson," Johnson said. "I wished it was under better circumstances."

"So do I," Larson said. "This is my son, Vincent. And he doesn't work in the business. My son is a director of a foundation, that works in developing countries, building homes for impoverished children."

"And this is one of our law associates, Cristina Yang," Johnson said. Vincent gave Cristina a slight squeeze when he shook her hand. She was surprised but he gave her a wink.

"So if you are not involved in the stores, what are you doing here?" Cristina asked.

"Oh, I am just here to give my dad moral support. He has a tough battle, especially with this one," Vincent said.

Soon enough, they all got down to discuss the case. During the discussions, Johnson noticed all of the flirtatious looks that Vincent was giving Cristina. It was a little bit distracting because it was obvious that Vincent was really into the young woman.

After the meeting, Vincent pressed his card into Cristina's hand. "Call me if you are interested in discussing helping the children of the world."

"Yes, I am interested," she said. "It would be very enlightening to find out about your foundation and its work."

"Oh, well then, why don't we discuss it over dinner tonight?" Vincent said. "I am always looking for people who are interested in our causes. Are you into Italian food?"

"Yes," she said.

"Okay, let's meet at Tulio for around seven thirty," he said.

"Yes, that is fine," she said. She shook his hand and bade him goodbye. Johnson watched this exchange in horror. Cristina was slipping away from Owen's grasp, right before his very eyes. He watched as she returned to her office. He knew his friend had to do something, before the girl walked away and never looked back.

It was only when she got back to her desk that Cristina realized that Tulio Ristorante was where she had first met Owen on that blind date, more than 18 months ago. She sighed but she realized she couldn't avoid places just because she and Owen had gone there. If that was the case, there was nowhere in Seattle she could go because they had gone to many places in the city.

At lunchtime, Steve was anxiously awaiting Owen's arrival at the gym. When he saw his friend, the first words out of his mouth were, "You are such an idiot!"

"Whoa, Steve, what did I do to you?" Owen asked, a little taken aback by the ferocity with which his friend uttered these words.

"Cristina! You are being such an idiot about Cristina. You are going to lose her, completely," Steve said.

"May I remind you, Steve, that she is the one who left me seven months ago?" Owen said.

"Yes, and she has called you but you have never returned her calls," Steve said. "Well, if you don't call her soon, she will soon be in the arms of a millionaire philanthropist and you will be just a distant memory. You love the girl. I know that. Stop being an idiot."

"What are you talking about? What millionaire philanthropist?" Owen asked. His voice rose sharply. "Who is he?"

"The millionaire philanthropist, Vincent Larson, who waltzed into my office, earlier today and asked her out," Steve said.

"Vincent Larson, son of Jonas Larson, owner of Larson Stores? The one who runs the Larson Foundation?" Owen asked. He had heard of Vincent Larson and all of the amazing work that he had been doing all over the world, in building homes for impoverished children and their families.

"The one and only," Steve said.

"How could you let this happen, Steve?" Owen said. "You could have stopped this."

"What do you mean? I have been your biggest champion from day one, when it comes to Cristina," Steve said. "But you blew it by not calling her and giving her a chance. I saw her delete your phone number out of her contacts list."

"No, she wouldn't do that," Owen said. He could not believe that she would do that. For her to delete his phone number meant that she no longer was going to call him. He had wanted her to fight for him; he hadn't wanted her to give up.

"I saw her do it with my own eyes. Then I saw her accept a dinner date with Vincent Larson. She has given up on you, Owen. She said by not calling her, you made it clear that you don't want anything to do with her," Steve said. "She said she was going to start dating again because it didn't make sense to save herself for someone, who doesn't want her. The thing is, Owen, I know that you want her but your stubbornness and pride are just getting in the way. You want her to fight for you. But you didn't give her any encouragement and now she's walking away."

Owen felt sick on the inside. He got up and started pacing.

"What am I going to do, Steve?" Owen said.

"Well, you have to got to get your act, together. If you want the girl, then make sure she knows that you want her. For starters, why don't you show up at her date with Larson, tonight? I do know that they are going to Tulio at 7.30," Steve said.

"She's going to Tulio with him?" he was aghast. "That was where Cristina and I met. That is where we had our blind date – our first date. And she is going with him there?" How could she do that? It was their place. And she was going to their place with another guy – not just any guy – Vincent Larson, philanthropist.

"I don't think I am going to work out, today, Steve. I have a lot on my mind," Owen said, walking away. He got to the locker room and changed out of his clothes. He took out his phone and listened to Cristina's messages again – the three that he had saved. She may have erased his number but he still had hers.

He found her number and pressed the dial button. After four rings, her voice mail came on. He hung up. It didn't make sense leaving a message. He needed to see her in person.

Cristina returned to her office and noted the missed call. The number looked vaguely familiar. She was not the type to remember phone numbers; she would just store the number if she needed it. She deleted the number. If it had been important, the person would have left a message and there was no new message.

She was looking forward to meeting with Vincent, later tonight. It wasn't a real date, she thought. He just wanted to talk about his foundation. But at least, it was the first step for her to get over Owen. She had to, this time. He didn't want her, anymore. That made her sad.

Owen made up his mind. He had to tell her that he still wanted her. He was going to show up at Tulio tonight.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. Your comments are always appreciated.**


	21. Chapter 21 Winning her back

He was tying his shoelaces in the attendings' locker room. He looked at his watch. It was 6 p.m. That gave him enough time to go home, shower, change into a suit and be ready to go to Tulio's for Cristina's date with Vincent Larson. That was so ironic, he thought, he was going to dress up for his ex-girlfriend's date with another man.

He was about to head out, when he was stopped by Dr. Pierce. "Dr. Hunt, we need you in the pit. Two-car accident, seven victims."

"Damn, I was now on my way out," he said. "Dr. Pierce, I will just go and change back into scrubs."

"I am sorry about that, Dr. Hunt," Pierce said, apologetically.

"It is not your fault, Pierce. I will be right there," Owen said. He headed back to the locker room and changed back into his scrubs. He still hoped he would be able to make it to Tulio's a little later. There was no way he was going to be able to go home and change into a suit. He would have to go as he was in his normal everyday clothes. So much for making a big impression, he thought.

He headed to the pit and then to the OR, where he spent the next three hours. It was nine o' clock by the time he left the OR. He hurriedly changed his clothes and drove across to Tulio's. It was already 9.30 p.m. when he got to the restaurant. He knew he was not properly dressed for the establishment, so he approached the maitre'd to find out whether Larson and his date were still there. Owen lied and said that he had an urgent message to give to Larson.

The maitre'd looked at his book and then he went to the dining area to have a look. He came back, "I am sorry but it seems that Mr. Larson and the young lady have already left." Owen thanked the maitre'd and decided to drive over to Cristina's house. When he got there, it was already 10 p.m. It didn't look like she was home. The house was in darkness and the front porch light was not on. Cristina always turned on that light, just before she went to sleep. It wasn't on, therefore, it was clear that she was not home as yet. Where the heck was she?

She had better be coming home and not spending the night with Mr. Larson. No, that was not possible, he thought. She didn't sleep with him on their first date, so she wasn't going to do it with Larson. At least, he hoped so.

He decided to wait until she got home. He still had the keys for her house. He had never given them back but she had never asked for them. He could use the keys to get inside the house but he knew that was not appropriate. They were exes and not a couple.

He laughed at himself because of the absurdity of the situation. Here he was, the head of the trauma department at one of the top hospitals in the country and he was sitting like a stalker outside of his ex-girlfriend's house. He wondered if this was how Jason, Cristina's ex felt. Even though he knew that Jason was really bad news, he could feel a little bit of sympathy for the man.

Owen was really exhausted. It had been a long, hard day with many hours in the OR. He figured he could maybe take a five minute nap before Cristina came home. He pushed back his seat, put up his windows and gratefully, closed his eyes. Five minutes passed, then 10 minutes, then 15 minutes. Soon enough, Owen was sound asleep.

A half an hour later, Cristina finally made it home, after being dropped off by Larson. She had spent the last hour and a half at Larson's foundation headquarters. He was showing her all of the work they were doing. She was very impressed by all of the work of the foundation. He asked if she would be free later on the week for a second date. She hesitated at first but agreed to meet him for dinner on Friday. As he dropped her off, she noticed the vehicle parked just off her driveway. She knew that vehicle. It was Owen's. Larson asked if he could walk her to the door. She made up a dumb excuse about turning the sprinklers on because she needed to investigate why Owen's vehicle was parked there. As he drove away, she made a beeline to the vehicle.

As she looked inside, she shook her head, when she saw Owen sleeping in the driver's seat. He looked very peaceful. He must be quite tired, she surmised. She decided not to wake him and to leave him there. If he was still there in the morning, she would at least offer him some coffee. She went into the house, wondering what he was doing there.

* * *

><p>Owen opened his eyes, when he heard the light knocking on the vehicle's window. He shaded his eyes; it was already turning light. He turned his head to see Cristina looking at him. He was embarrassed to realize that he had fallen asleep and had spent the entire night inside his vehicle, outside of her house. He rubbed his eyes and put down the window.<p>

"Good morning," she said. "I was wondering whether you would like to come inside for a shower and some breakfast."

"Morning," he grunted out. "Yes, thank you. I would appreciate that."

"Okay," she said. He followed her up the walkway and into her house. He noticed that she was already in her business suit, already ready for a day at the office.

"If you want to take a shower, there is a box of your clothes just outside of my closet in the bedroom. When I left, I had put the clothes you had here, into a box and placed it into storage with the rest of my things. So when I came back, I got everything, including your box of clothes, into storage. They did smell a little musty when I got it back but I washed them and they are all clean. So you can take the box of clothes, when you leave," she said. "I also put a new toothbrush for you. It is the blue one on the bathroom counter. There is also a fresh towel, too."

He nodded, "Thanks." He went into her bedroom and found that she had only made slight changes to it, since he was last there. He had not been in her house or her bedroom in seven months. He missed being there. He found the box of clothes and chose a pair of jeans, a t-shirt and a shirt, underwear and a clean pair of socks. He hadn't realized he had so many articles of clothing still at her house. His favorite Harvard sweatshirt was there, too. He had thought he lost it. He changed out of his clothes and absent-mindedly tossed his dirty clothes into her laundry basket, as he had always done so before.

He went into the bathroom, brushed his teeth and looked at himself in the mirror. He wondered what he was going to say about why he was there. He had planned a whole speech, if he had got there at the restaurant. Now, all those words just flew out of his head and he did not know what to say, anymore. He got into the shower and allowed the warm water to flow over him. His neck ached a bit from sleeping in the car and the heat from the shower felt good.

He dried off, quickly and changed into the clothes he had taken out from the box. He closed the bedroom door and went to the kitchen.

"Hi," she said. "I hope you are feeling better."

"Yes, thanks. The shower was quite refreshing. Thanks for the clothes," he said.

"No problem. They are your clothes, so you don't have to thank me for them," she said. "I made you an omelet and some hot coffee." She placed the plate and the hot cup of coffee in front of him.

"You cooked? That's new," he said, smiling.

"Well, I didn't have much of a social life in LA, so I took some cooking classes," she said. He was actually gratified to hear that she did not have much of a social life, while she was away. He didn't have much, either. He dug into the omelet. It was incredibly good.

"My gosh, it's great," he said, appreciatively.

"You sound surprised?" she said, chuckling. "I am surprised myself. I always thought I was a horrible cook."

"Well, I wouldn't say you were horrible. It is just that you didn't make too much of an effort in the kitchen," he said. "Who knew that Cristina Yang could be hiding some culinary skills?"

"Culinary skills and Cristina Yang in the same sentence seems weird," she said. She sat down on the other side of the table, sipping her coffee and watching him eat.

"You're not eating?" he asked, as he bit into a slice of toast.

"I ate already," she said. "Just waiting for you to finish breakfast and then, I have to go off to work."

When she said that, he suddenly felt strange, like if she just waiting for him to leave.

"Aren't you going to ask?" he decided to broach the elephant in the room.

"Ask what?" she said. She knew fully well what he was talking about.

"What I was doing outside of your house, asleep in my vehicle?" he said. "The most obvious question."

"I guess you wanted to talk to me," she said. "But why now? I tried calling you but you never called me back. Why do you want to talk to me now, when you didn't want to talk to me, then?"

"I heard you deleted my number from your phone contacts," he said. "I know that meant you were not going to call me, again. And, I wanted you to call me, again."

She was incredulous. "You wanted me to keep calling you? Yet you didn't want to return any of my calls. And where does Steve Johnson get off by telling you that I deleted your number?" she spluttered. "I know he is your friend but he is my boss and should not be interfering in my private life."

"He was only looking after my interests, so don't be too hard on him. He knows that I still want you but I have been too stubborn and too proud to admit it," he said.

Cristina scoffed. "So you haven't called me because you're stubborn," she said. "So how the heck would I know that you still wanted me?"

"You hurt me really badly when you left. I was devastated," he said. "It was as if my world had ended."

"I offered you the chance of a long-distance relationship but you said that you were not into that. You gave me an ultimatum, Owen Hunt," she said. "I did what I thought was best for me, for my career. And damn, it was hard for me, too."

"When I heard that you came back, I was at first, joyful that you were back in the same city with me, but then all the hurt that I felt, came rushing back," he said. "Steve told me you were back. I didn't want to hear about you, at first. But then I got your first message; I played it over and over again. I saved it. Then I got your other messages, two weeks later. I listened to those repeatedly and then I saved those, too."

"And yet, you didn't call," she responded. "What did you expect me to do? You didn't even give me an inkling of an idea that you still want to be with me."

"I wanted you to fight for me," he said. "I wanted you to want me, so badly. What I didn't expect is that you giving up and going on a date with another man."

"Oh. So that is what has made you suddenly show up on my doorstep. That it is possible I am no longer mooning over you and be interested in someone else. Only when your place in my heart seems to be threatened, do you show up," she said, as her voice rose.

She got up and started pacing. "Leave. Get your box of clothes from my bedroom and leave. You couldn't give me the time of day before but only because, I am possibly looking elsewhere, you're here."

"Cristina, please," he said. She went into her bedroom and handed him his box of clothes. "Leave, now."

He took the box of clothes and started down the walkway to his car. His mind was flooded with conflicting thoughts. He stopped and turned right around.

He knocked on the door. She opened the door. "What do you want?" she said, angrily.

"Goddammit, Cristina. I am not leaving. We are going to thrash this out, right here and right now. And you want to know something else, this box of clothes is going to stay in your house because I will need some clothes when I come over," he said. "You are not going to kick me out. I want to be with you and I know you want to be with me. You came back to Seattle and the only reason you did that is that you want to be with me. So try as you may, you are not going to get rid of me."

She stared at him, dumbfounded.

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><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. I do love reading what you think.**


	22. Chapter 22 Wooing her

She was still speechless as he passed her and went back into her house and then, into her bedroom. She followed him and was shocked to see him, unpacking his clothes out of the box and into her walk-in closet. She finally found her voice.

"What are you doing?" she spluttered out.

"I am putting my clothes where they belong in your closet," he said, firmly.

"I never agreed that you could do that," she said, frowning. He continued packing back his clothes, without paying her any mind. When he was through, he closed the closet door and looked at her. "Now we can talk," he said.

They walked back out to the living room. "Just because you gave your grand little speech does not mean that I am just going to fall into your arms and everything is going to be okay," she said, as she paced, nervously.

He sat down. He was calm as he answered, "I know that it won't be that easy. I was just pointing out a couple of truths. That you came back to Seattle so that you and I could try again. That I love you and you love me. Those are undeniable truths. Plus we both know that neither one of us was happy when we were apart."

"Yes, I know all of that is true. Yes, I came back to see if we could work again. But I called you but you never called me back. You didn't give me any indication that you wanted us to be together," she said. "So I moved on. And the only reason you showed up is because you didn't want me to move on. This is why you slept outside my house like a stalker."

"Well, from my point of view, I was extremely hurt that you left. If you wanted me back, my ego wanted you to fight for me. I wanted you to keep trying to get me back. I was stubborn that way," he said. "How could you do that - just give up – surrender the fight and go out with someone else?"

She shook her head, as she continued pacing.

"Okay, I understand your point of view. I do but you must understand mine. I moved on because why should I be wasting my life on someone, who by all indications, did not want me," she said. "There is only so much a girl could take."

"I am sorry about that. I guess my plan for you to fight for me, backfired," he said. "I want you and I hope you want me, too."

She looked at him. "It's too late," she said.

"No, no, no," he said. "It is never too late. How could it be too late? You have only dated him once," he said. Then, his mind went to a place that it did not want to go. "Please, don't tell me that you slept with him." He felt his heart was breaking.

"No, of course not. Did I sleep with you on our first date? No, I didn't," she said. "So why would I sleep with someone else on our first date?"

"Oh, thank God," he whispered. "Then why is it too late?"

"I have another date," she said. "On Friday with the same guy."

"Break that date. Tell him that you have changed your mind," he pleaded, his blue eyes burning into her.

"No, this is not going to be so easy, Owen," she said. "Just because you are here and pleading how much you love me is not enough. You made me feel like you didn't want me. I am not just going to be some smitten maiden, willing to just fall in your arms, like if nothing happened."

"So what are you saying? There is no hope for us?" he asked, his voice breaking at the thought.

"I didn't say that. Do you want me?" she asked.

"Yes, more than anything," he said.

"Then, you will have to fight for me. You will have to woo me. You will have to prove to me that you are the better man for me. I have a viable alternative now – a man who is wealthy, handsome and well-educated and who gives back to the world in a big way. He is admirable in many ways – he is a good, kind, generous man. I may not love him as I love you but I could learn to love him," she said.

"But you're still giving me a chance," he said, softly.

"Yes, Owen, I am. Prove to me that you are the man for me," she said. "Prove to me how much you want me."

He knew he wanted her back in his life. He made up his mind – he was up for the challenge. If she wanted to be wooed, he was going to woo her.

"Okay, I will agree to this because I believe you are worth fighting for. I love you and I want you," he said. "I know I am the best man for you."

"Okay," she said. She looked at her watch. "I have to leave, now," she said. "Got to get to work. So, are you staying here or leaving?"

"I will leave. What about my clothes in your closet?" he asked.

"Just leave them," she said. "If you're going to be around, sometimes, you may need a fresh set of clothes." He grinned. That was definitely a hopeful sign that she was allowing his clothes to stay.

They bade each other goodbye at her door. He drove off, still wondering what was the arrangement he had made with Cristina. He gave her a call. She answered with a crisp voice, "Hello, this is Cristina Yang. How may I help you?"

"It's me, Owen. I would very much like to ask you out on a date on Saturday night," he said.

"Dinner?" she asked.

"Yes, at seven. I will make reservations," he said.

"Fine," she said. "I look forward to seeing you on Saturday."

"Good. And, Cristina, save my phone number in your contacts," he said. "You will be seeing it, often."

"Okay. Have a good day, Owen," she said. She hung up and saved his number, once again. She smiled.

* * *

><p>He showed up at 6.45 p.m. on Saturday night with a bouquet of a dozen long-stemmed red roses. She opened the door. She was wearing a white strapless dress with nude shoes. Her hair was up with a few loose tendrils, exposing the creamy skin of her neck and shoulders. She let him in and they smiled, happily, at each other.<p>

"You look gorgeous," he said.

"I will be ready to go in a jiffy," she said. "I was just about to put on my earrings when you came." She disappeared into her bedroom and came back out with a pair of dazzling diamond earrings.

"Those are lovely," he said. In the back of his mind, he wondered if a man had given them to her.

"Yes, they are. They were a gift," she said. She offered no further information, much to his chagrin. The truth was that it was a gift from the women at the law firm in LA as a going-away present. Owen was left to stew on who had given her those expensive earrings. He hoped it was not the Larson guy because that would mean he was not only a philanthropist, he also had exquisite taste in jewelry.

"So, are we ready?" he asked, fighting the urge to ask her who bought her those earrings.

"Yes, we are," she said. She wrapped a cape around her shoulders, as they headed out to his car. They were going to one of their favorite restaurants – a romantic French restaurant which they had frequented when they were dating.

As they entered, Cristina looked around. "I have missed this place. It was one of our favorite restaurants."

"Yes," he said. "That's why I brought you here. Kinda help you remember the good times that we used to have here."

"I always remember our good times, Owen," she said. The waiter seated them at their favorite table near a window, so they could watch the boats in the harbor. The candlelight illuminated her face and he gasped at how beautiful she looked.

"I love you so much," he said. "I hope you know that."

"I know, Owen," she said. "It's just not that simple, anymore. I have other things to think about."

"You mean like Vincent Larson," he said. He knew he sounded a little bitter. Hell, he sounded a lot bitter.

"Well, yes like Vincent Larson," she said. He knew she had a date with him, the night before, and the thought of it just drove him crazy. It just made him feel light-headed.

"Excuse me," he said. He headed to the restroom and held on to the sink. Then, he took a deep breath and then, he splashed some water on his face. The restroom attendant handed him a towel.

"Thank you," Owen said, as he patted his face dry. He tipped the attendant before he left. He returned to the table.

"Are you feeling alright?" she asked.

"Yes," he said. "I am okay." He just didn't want to hear about Vincent Larson again for the night. He was determined that this night was going to be about him and Cristina.

"I took the liberty of ordering scotch for you. I also ordered you the salmon that you like. I hope you don't mind," she said. She knew him so well that she could order for him, he thought. They were like an old married couple, who knew each other's tastes.

"That's fine," he said. "So how have you been this week?"

"Got an interesting case with Mr. Johnson," she said. "I am very excited. Of course, I cannot tell you what it is because of client confidentiality. What about you?"

"It's always exciting in trauma. Some guy had a knife lodged in his skull. Amazingly, it missed all of the major arteries. He would need therapy to re-learn some functions but he is alive and that is the important thing about it," he said.

"I don't know how you do it. I could never be a surgeon. I hate hospitals," she said. "All that blood. If I was an intern, I would faint dead on the spot."

"Yes, I know. When you had your appendix out, you just wanted to get out of there," he said.

"Well, at least, I did find out about the Barracuda and her designs on you," she said. He laughed. It had amused him so much that she had been so jealous and had marked her territory in such a public manner.

"Yeah, well you effectively got rid of her," he said. "By the way, she is getting married soon to one of our other attendings at the hospital. He had transferred from Tacoma and he wasn't aware of her reputation. Six months later, they are getting married."

"Well, it would seem that she achieved her goal," Cristina said. They had a really enjoyable dinner. It was indeed just like old times before she had left for LA and they were still together. When the band started, he asked her to dance. As he pulled her close, he breathed in her scent and found himself, feeling weak in the knees. He felt intoxicated by her essence. He couldn't help himself when his lips gently brushed against her neck. Her body responded as she got chills all over. Physically, they were still in tune with each other. The slightest touch could turn the other on. She turned her head so that their lips met. The kiss deepened and their tongues danced with each other's. They continued to kiss and dance, oblivious to the other dancing couples around them. When the song ended, they still held on to each other, until they were the last ones on the dance floor.

"Let's go back to our table," Cristina whispered.

"I wish we could stay like this, forever," he whispered back. He reluctantly took her back to the table. "I guess I should take you home." He paid the bill and they headed back to her house. He walked her up to her door.

"Do you want to come in for some coffee?" she asked. He nodded. He didn't want coffee but he just wanted to the night to last longer. As they got in, her phone rang. She answered with a giggle. "Hey, you. Yeah, I just got in. I can't talk right now. I will talk to you, later. Okay, bye." He listened to the conversation and wondered if that was Vincent Larson who had just called her. It made him feel light-headed again. He sat down on the couch and waited for her to bring his cup of coffee.

He was quiet, as he drank his coffee. Cristina wondered what was wrong with him. After finishing his cup, he turned to her. "Well, I guess I better be going."

"Okay, if you wish to go," she said. She followed him to the door. She gave him a light kiss on the lips. "I'll see you," she said. He nodded.

As he left, she took out her phone and started dialing the person, who had called her earlier. "Hey, Terry," she said. "Yeah, I couldn't talk just now. Owen was here." Just then, there was a knock at her door. "Hold on, Terry, I think he forgot something." She went back to the door. Owen came back inside, closed the door behind him and took her into his arms as he gave her the most passionate, most desperate kiss he had ever given her.

"I don't wish," he whispered. "I don't wish to go."

* * *

><p><strong>AN Please leave your comments. It's always a great feeling to see your reviews. Thank you so much.**


	23. Chapter 23 About last night

Cristina responded to Owen's kiss with equal ferocity. Her body had not experienced sex in several months and it had clearly missed this man – the taste, smell and feel of him. As they kissed, he picked her up and she wrapped her legs around him, hiking up her dress so she could do so. She let her phone drop to the floor. She could hear Terry saying, "Cristina, are you there?" But at the moment, Cristina could not care less. She had more important things to deal with.

Owen pushed her up against a wall, supporting her weight with one hand, while he used the other to rip off her underwear. Their kisses continued to be heated and desperate. She bit him on the neck. He winced a little as he could feel her teeth nipping him. Somehow, the pain turned him on, a little more.

"I can't wait," he said. "I need you now." He unzipped his pants and freed himself from the confines of his boxer briefs.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," she whispered, breathlessly. "Fuck me, now. Please." He didn't need to be asked twice, as he entered her in one swift move. She screamed with pleasure. He felt so good being inside of her. It had been so long since she felt him thrust deep and hard and fast inside of her. "Harder," she screamed and he obliged. Every time, he pounded into her, she gasped with pleasure.

"Oh, God, Owen, I have missed you so much," she said. "You are freaking amazing. Don't….stop. I want this to last forever."

"I have missed you, too. More than you could ever imagine," he said between thrusts. She closed her eyes, reveling in the pleasure as her fingers dug deep into his back. He could feel himself wanting to come but he would only do so, if she climaxed. He willed himself not to come, until he could feel her walls tightening around him. She screamed and scratched his back, as she came. It was only then he released himself into her. They stayed there, panting for a minute, until he slowly let her down on to the floor.

They stared into each other's eyes for a moment before they kissed again.

"I think I need some water," Cristina said, as she pulled her dress down. Owen fixed himself and zipped up his pants. "I think I need some water, too," he said. She went into the kitchen and brought out two tall glasses of water. She was so thirsty that she drank out all of her water in one go, and then took a block of ice that was still in the glass and ran it slowly across her face and her neck. It was the sensuous way that she did it that found Owen hardening again. He wanted her so much. He reached over and licked the melted ice on her neck. It tasted like a mixture of Cristina and water.

"Let's go the bedroom and do this again because you're doing things to me that I cannot control," he said. "This time, without our clothes." He stood up and put out his hand. She took it, as he led her to her bedroom.

So they made love again for the second and the third time, before they finally fell asleep, naked in each other's arms.

* * *

><p>He woke up first. He looked around. Where the heck was he? Then, he remembered. He was in Cristina's room. It was such a long time that he had not spent the night there. He looked across at his love and his body reacted to seeing her, by stiffening once again. He gently shook her awake. She opened her eyes and looked at him. She knew exactly what he wanted and smiled, as she allowed him to get on top of her.<p>

"Didn't you have enough last night?" she teased. He buried his face in her hair as he whispered, "When it comes to you, I never have enough." After another torrid love-making session, Owen reluctantly got up.

"I have to go to work, today. My shift starts in a bit. I am going to take a shower and change my clothes," he said. He went into the closet and pulled out some clean clothes. "See I knew leaving these clothes would come in handy." After his shower, he changed into his clothes, went over to her and kissed her, softly. "So what are you going to do this Sunday morning, while I am slaving away in the ER, saving lives?"

"I am attending a charity fund-raiser today. Terry and I are going to it. It is at the yacht club. They're having a race, today," Cristina said. "Oh my God, I just remembered I was talking to Terry on the phone when you came back last night and we had our little session against the wall. She must have heard everything."

Owen laughed. "Well, I think you have some explaining to do to your friend," he said. "She may either be scandalized or may have been turned on."

"This is so embarrassing," Cristina said. "I will never hear the end of it from her."

"Alright," he said. He kissed her on her nose. "I will see you later." She nodded, as he left.

She was perfectly aware that she had not told him everything. It was certainly true that she was going to a charity fund-raiser. What she had failed to mention is that the fund-raiser was for the Larson Foundation and that Vincent Larson was the host. There was no need to get Owen upset by this, she thought. She knew that Owen was very sensitive about Vincent Larson.

She was going because she had already volunteered her services to help with the organization of the event. She had made a promise and she was going to keep it. She had also volunteered Terry's services to the event. They were going to talk about it on the phone last night but were interrupted by the re-appearance of Owen at her door. Not that she minded as she remembered his hot kisses across her stomach and breasts. In fact, she could still feel the roughness of his tongue on her nipples, as he got them hard and erect.

"Stop it, Cristina," she chided herself. "You have to get dressed. You have a long day, today."

* * *

><p>Two hours later, she found herself at the Yacht Club. Terry was already there, taking tickets. She shook her head at Cristina. "You're late and I know very well why you are late. From what I heard, you obviously had a better night than me. After hearing the two of you go at it, I had to suffer alone in my bed, staring at the ceiling."<p>

Cristina groaned. "I am so sorry about that. I am very embarrassed." Terry raised her hand to stop her. "Don't be. That was the most exciting thing that has happened to me in a while," Terry said, laughing. "At least one of my friends is getting some hot action. Ah, here is our host coming. Didn't you go out with him on Friday night? You're juggling two hot men. You have to tell which one is better under the sheets." Terry raised her eyebrows in anticipation.

"Yeah, I did go out with him on Friday, but it is not what you think," Cristina protested but she could not continue because Vincent came up.

"Ah, Cristina, I almost thought that you weren't going to come. I would have been very disappointed," Vincent said, as he kissed her on the cheek.

"I have to apologize. I know I am a little late. But you must know I always keep my obligations. I promised to help and I am here. A promise is a promise," she said.

"Good, good," Vincent said. "I need you to help in the VIP section – the folks who donated the most money."

"Okay, I am going to be super extra nice," Cristina said, as she followed Vincent to the VIP area.

* * *

><p>Owen went to work that day, feeling really great. He was happy – happier than he had been in a long time. Finally, it seemed that things were getting better between him and Cristina. Their love-making had been particularly intense last night, probably due to the fact that neither of them had made love to each other in quite a while. The morning had been busy, with two accident victims coming in. At lunch time, he went to the cafeteria to grab a quick bite to eat. It was there that he found one of his fellow attendings, wearing what appeared to be sailing clothes.<p>

"Hey, you certainly look like you're going off on your boat," he said.

"I am," Dr. Spencer said. "Heading to the Yacht Club now for a charity fundraiser. My crew is in one of the races."

"The charity fund-raiser at the Yacht Club? My girlfriend went to that. Maybe you will see here there," Owen said. He noted how easily it was for him to say "girlfriend." He hadn't used that word in seven months. He did use the word "ex-girlfriend" during that time but saying "girlfriend" now definitely sounded better.

"Oh, okay. The pretty Asian girl? You guys are back together?" Spencer asked. Owen nodded with a smile. "Yes," he said. "We are back together."

"Alright, I better head out now. We want to win the Larson cup and put it up in our clubhouse," Spencer said.

Alarm bells started ringing in Owen's head. "The Larson Cup?" he queried. He knew that name and he was coming to a conclusion that he did not like.

"Yeah, the charity fund-raiser is for the Larson Foundation. They hold this every year to raise money for the Foundation's charity works around the world. Vincent Larson is the host of the event. Last year, we got pipped at the line by the crew from Hampton. Not this year, though, my crew is going to win," Spencer said. Owen stopped listening to Dr. Spencer after he said that Vincent Larson was the host of the event.

He walked away, while Spencer was still talking. Cristina did not mention this at all, this morning. He was in shock. Was she still dating Larson, even after all what they shared last night? How could she still be seeing Larson? He headed back to the pit, feeling shattered. For the rest of his shift, he worked on automatic pilot, concentrating solely on the patients in front of him. He could not let his mind think of anything else or he would not have been able to do his job.

After his shift, he drove directly to Cristina's house. It was still in darkness. She was not home as yet. He decided to use the key for her house that he still had. He didn't think she would mind that he let himself in. After all, they did share their bodies with each other, last night. And that is what he could not understand. They had made love and it was beautiful. Surely, that meant something to her. But then, she went off to be with Vincent Larson. The hurt that he felt was immense.

He made himself a drink and then sat on her sofa, waiting for her. He didn't have to wait long, when he heard the click of the lock. She came in, looking tired.

"Hey," she said. "I knew you were here. I saw the lights were on." She plopped down next to him. "I am so beat, Owen. What a long, tiring day."

"It has, has it?" he said, a little coldly. She looked at him with a quizzical look.

"What's the matter?" she asked. "Did you have a bad day at work?"

"No, it was the usual – lots of trauma and OR time. I did have an interesting conversation with one of the other attendings," he said.

"What about?" she said, as she kicked off her shoes. She was thinking that she needed a hot bath and a good night's sleep.

"Dr. Spencer was dressed in sailing clothes and was headed out to the yacht club for a charity fund-raiser," Owen said.

"Oh," Cristina said. It was clear that Owen knew about the beneficiary of the fund-raiser.

"Yes, oh," he said. "I found out that the fund-raiser that you told me that you were going to, was for the Larson Foundation and the host of the event was Vincent Larson. Does that name sound familiar to you?"

"It's not what you think," she said, quietly.

"What do you mean that it is not what I think? I knew you had a date with him on Friday night. I knew that but I would think that after what we shared last night together that you would not be seeing him again," Owen said. "We made love and you go off and see your other …" He could not say the word "boyfriend" to describe Vincent Larson. That was wrong. He was Cristina's boyfriend, not Vincent Larson.

She could see the intense hurt in his eyes.

"Okay, Owen," she said. "Let me tell you about my relationship with Vincent."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. Thanks for leaving your thoughts.**


	24. Chapter 24 Fifty years

"What do you have to tell me about your relationship with Vincent Larson? Is it something that I want to hear? Just thinking about you and him together makes me feel light-headed," Owen said. He held his head in his hands. He was getting an instant headache.

"You have the wrong idea about Vincent and me," she said, quietly.

"Wrong idea?" he looked at her in disbelief. "You went out with him on Friday night. On Saturday night, you and I had a romantic date and we made love. On Sunday, you spent the entire day with him at his charity fundraiser at the Yacht Club. What am I missing here? What do I have wrong?"

"Okay, let's go back a bit. Remember the night you slept outside of my house and the next morning, you told me that you wanted to get back together. I told you that it was not going to be that easy because I had started seeing someone else," she said.

"Of course, I remember. You told me to fight for you – to prove to you that I am the better man for you," he said, bitterly. "So I have been fighting for you, as you asked. I thought that given that we made love, that would have helped you make your decision. But, apparently, I was wrong."

"Owen, let me finish, please. Yes, I did have that date with Vincent on Friday but I had been thinking about you and me, all week. I realized that I still loved you very much, despite all of the crap that has gone on between the two of us. I told Vincent that I was in love with someone else and it was best that we did not continue. I asked if we could still be friends. He said he understood and he was not going to stand in the way of true love."

"What? What? You're not dating him, anymore? Oh my God, Cristina, that makes me so happy," he said, excitedly. He reached over and gave her a deep kiss. "So this means we are together, right? You and me are back on?"

"Yes, Owen, it is you and me again. I hope you remember the next time I call you and ask you to call me back, you are going to do so," she said.

"I will return all of your calls," he said. "I was just being stupid. But, wait a minute, if you had decided that you weren't going to continue dating him on Friday. How come you went to the charity fund-raiser today?"

"Because I promised him that I would help out. His foundation is doing amazing work all over the world and it is something that I believe in. Plus here is the real kicker. Today, he told me that since we are no longer dating, he would like to hire the firm to represent the foundation. He would like me to the liaison for the firm, in dealing with the foundation. I brought in my first major client, all by myself. He said he wanted to deal with somebody, who truly cared about the foundation and the work it does," she said.

"Wow, that is fantastic," Owen said. Then, a thought just struck him. "Hey, wait a minute, when we went out last night, you made me think that you were still seeing Vincent Larson, when you had already told him that you weren't going to date him, anymore. Why did you do that?"

"Well, I had to make sure that you were really still trying. Plus I couldn't make it that easy for you. That I was a pushover for you. You know I had to make you work for it. My charade would have lasted a little bit longer if it wasn't for that attending at your hospital. Damn him," Cristina said.

"You were going to make me suffer," he said. "Hmmm. You cruel, cruel woman." He smiled. "I don't mind, that now, seeing that I am the only man in your life." He pulled her close to him.

"If I wasn't so tired," she said. "I would let you make love to me. But I am so beat. All I want to do is sleep. Do you just want to go to bed and cuddle? I am an awesome spooner."

"Yeah," he said. "I am tired, too. Let's just go to bed. Spooning is mandatory."

They lay in her bed together, just holding each other. "Just cuddling like this, makes me think like we are an old married couple, who has been together for 50 years," she laughed.

"That's not so bad," he said. "To be together for 50 years would be awesome. That's something I would want for my wife and me." He looked at her. "I always think that you are going to be the one."

"The one, what?" she asked.

"The one I spend the rest of my life with," he said. She lifted up her head and looked at him.

"What are you saying?" she said. "Is that a proposal of some sort?"

"Um, no," he said. The words had just come out of his mouth but there was real feeling behind it all. He really wanted them to have their 50 years together.

"Oh, good. Thank God," she said. She lay her head back on his chest. "We've only got back together. We can't be thinking of stuff like that, now."

"Uh, yeah," he said. "Too early for that kind of thing." He pretended to agree but truthfully, he really thought that it was not too early. Their time apart had made him realize how much he needed her back in his life. He had been so desolate. He felt he had not been complete without her.

They lay in silence, until he was pretty sure she had fallen asleep. He stared up at the ceiling. He couldn't afford to lose her, again. He wanted to make their bond permanent. He kissed her on the top of her head. He knew she had to give her some time but not too long a time, he thought. He hoped that she would soon be agreeable to the idea of becoming his wife.

* * *

><p>The next day, he was meeting Steve Johnson for their lunchtime workout. Owen was running on the treadmill.<p>

"Hey, Owen. I guess things have been working out for you and Cristina," Steve said. Owen gave him a questioning look. He knew Cristina would not willingly tell her boss about their reunion. Owen was the one who was more inclined to discuss his love life with Steve, as he was his closest friend.

"How do you know that?" Owen asked.

"Well, I put two and two together. Cristina told me that she had acquired the Larson Foundation as a client. By inference, that means Vincent Larson is also our client. So if he is our client, then company rules and regulations state that she cannot fraternize with a client. Hence, she is no longer dating him. And if she is no longer dating him, then the only other reason is that she decided to get back together with you," Steve said, triumphantly. "Am I right or what?"

"Good Lord, no wonder you are a lawyer," Owen said. "You filled in the whole backstory. Yes, we are back together and I am very happy." He stepped off the treadmill.

"Steve, I need to ask you a serious question," he said. "I am not going to beat around the bush, here. I want to ask Cristina to marry me."

"Whoa, hold on there, soldier," Steve said. "You just got back together. I am pretty sure it was probably just this weekend. And you want to ask her to get married?"

"The seven months apart from Cristina have made me realize how much I want her in my life, permanently. I have reached a point in my life, where I do want to settle down and start a family. I can only imagine such a scenario with Cristina as the one I share my life with. I have always seen her as the one. My vision of that future was shattered when she left. But now that she is back, I can have that dream again," Owen said.

"You may be ready, Owen but is she?" Steve asked. "She is younger than you by quite a few years and may not be ready for that."

"Well, I kind of touched on the topic, last night," Owen said. "She was saying that we were like an old married couple, who have been together for 50 years. And it occurred to me, then that I did want to be with her, 50 years from now and I told her so. She asked me if it was a proposal but I could tell from her tone that she was hoping it was not. So I told her it wasn't. But deep down inside, I have hope that she will change her mind. After all, she did come back to Seattle just for me. She gave up an amazing opportunity to be with me. Surely, that says something about how much she loves me."

"Yes, I know," Steve said. "Let me give you a piece of advice. Don't push too soon for this. Let me gauge the situation."

"Okay," Owen said. "I will hold off. I don't want her running away from me, again. That, I will not be able to bear."

"That's a wise idea," Steve said. The things he did for his friend, he thought. Owen was a good friend and Steve just wanted him to be happy.

* * *

><p>Steve went back to the office and wandered into Cristina's office.<p>

"So, Cristina, I just wanted to have a little chat with you, regarding your future in the firm," Johnson said. "Now we lost you once to our competitor in Los Angeles and we don't want that to happen again. We think you have a very bright future with us and we want you to be happy with us. Especially now that you are starting to bring in your own clients."

"Why, thank you, sir," Cristina said. "I am really grateful that the firm took me back, after I left. It was really generous of you all to do so. As for my future for the firm, I hope I can continue to grow and learn with the firm."

"We think that one day, you might be able to make partner at this firm. Now, I don't tell this to any young lawyer but you are something special," Steve said.

"Why, thank you, sir," Cristina said, feeling overwhelmed with the praise.

"We do admire stability and loyalty in our firm. All of our senior partners and many of our junior partners have all settled down and have families. While there is a focus on the work, we do recognize that our people must have balanced lives and we encourage that. It makes for a happier, healthier employee. So just because you are young, we don't really expect you to be totally work-driven. We want you to have a balanced life, too," Johnson said. He was sweating a bit. He knew he was entering tricky territory here.

"Thank you, sir. I agree that people should have lives, outside of their work. Maybe, some day, I will be ready to settle down and have a family," she said. "It has always been in my plans. I suppose that will happen when I am sure I am with the right person."

"Okay, good, good," Steve said. "Will that be soon?"

"What?" Cristina asked. That was a weird question, she thought.

"Oh, nothing, nothing," Steve muttered. He had to get out of there, fast, before he got in any deeper. "So, see you in a bit about the Fowler case."

"Yes, I have all of the research done," she said. "Will see you in five minutes."

Steve left the office and promptly gave Owen a call. "Owen, I have some good news and I have some bad news, regarding Cristina."

"Okay, tell me," Owen said.

"The good news is that Cristina does see herself, married and with family," Steve said.

"Ah, yes," Owen said. He could already see their 50 years together.

"The bad news is that she said that she needed to be sure that she was with the right person," Steve said.

"What do you mean, if she is with the right person? I am the right person," Owen said, flabbergasted.

"Well, it seems that she still isn't sure as yet," Steve said. "You seriously have some work to do."

Cristina entered the room, carrying a large folder. She gave her boss a smile and sat down, waiting for him to finish his call.

"Ah, Mr. De Souza, yes, yes, I will get on that right away," Steve said. "Yes, I know it is an urgent matter."

"Cristina just came in the room, right?" Owen asked.

"Yes, yes, that is correct, Mr. De Souza. Yes, we will discuss it at our next meeting," Steve said.

"Okay. Thanks, Steve," Owen said.

"No problem, Mr. De Souza," Steve said. He gratefully hung up the phone. He looked at the young woman, sitting on the opposite side of the desk. "Now, Cristina, let's get started."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. Thank you. I really do appreciate them.**


	25. Chapter 25 The Right One

Cristina was already on her way home when she got the call. It was Owen.

"Hey, lover," she said. Owen smiled on the other end because she called him that.

"Hey, babe," he answered. "Are you on your way home?"

"Yes, long day at work. Are you at my house?" she asked.

"Yup, I came in a while ago, darling," he said. "I have dinner on the table, if you're hungry."

"Am I? I was the last one to leave the office. I would have eaten my computer, if I didn't leave," she said. "At least I am not coming home to stale leftovers that I had from last week. Thank you."

"Okay, just waiting for you, honey," he said. She thought he was really laying it on thick with the terms of endearment. Seriously, what was up with him?

"Sooner than you think. I am already pulling in the driveway," she said. She parked in the garage and took her briefcase, handbag and laptop out of the car and headed to the entry next to the kitchen. Owen was there, waiting. He took everything out of her hands, as soon as she came in. He handed her a glass of white wine.

"My, what a greeting. To what do I owe this pleasure?" she asked, kissing him on the lips, before she took a sip of the wine.

"Just happy to see you," he said. "Why don't you freshen up and join me in the dining room, afterwards?"

"As you wish, kind sir," she said. She headed straight to her bedroom and was surprised to find some satin lounging pajamas already laid out on the bed for her. She put down her wine, stripped her clothes and headed to the shower. The warm water felt good after that long day in the office. After showering, she put on the satin pjs and headed out to the dining room.

The room was lit by the candlelight, everywhere. "Oh, my God, you did all this? It is gorgeous."

"Well, candelight for the lovely lady," he said, as he led her to the table. He pulled out her chair and she sat down. He poured out some more wine for her.

"So what is on the menu?" she asked, eagerly.

"Rock Cornish hens with roasted vegetables and cornbread muffins," he said, triumphantly, as he brought out their dishes.

"Wow, Owen. You're going to make some lucky lady a wonderful spouse," she said, teasingly. He wasn't quite sure how to take that. Was she saying that he was going to make some other woman (not herself) a fine husband? Or was she referring to herself? He decided to take it the best way he could.

"I am glad you recognize that," he said. As they ate their meal, he stared lovingly at her pretty face, made even more beautiful by the soft lights of the candle.

"You seem to be pouring on the romance," she asked. "The dinner, the candles, the wine, the satin pjs. Do you want something tonight? I was going to give it to you without all of this, you know."

"I just love you," he said. "Just wanted you to know that you are special to me." He hoped that he was getting through to her that he was definitely the right one for her. It had bothered him, tremendously, when Steve had told that Cristina was having doubts about him. He knew that they just got back together and he understood why Cristina was cautious, given their recent history. But he had thought that the year that they had spent together before their split, had counted for something.

"Okay," she said. "You're pretty darn special to me, too."

"I am glad to hear you say that," he said. "I was thinking that maybe, we can go away for the weekend, just you and me, far away from work and the city. There is a bed and breakfast lower down the coast that has fabulous ocean views. But best of all, it's quiet and secluded. Once you say the word, I can make the booking. Can we go away this weekend?"

She contemplated the work at the office. She was quiet, as she calculated how to ensure that her work was done, so she could leave early on Friday. He was disturbed by her silence at his proposal.

"Um, Cristina, why so quiet?" he said.

"I am just working out how I am going to shift my work load around so we can go away, together," she said. "I am just thinking it through."

"Oh," he said. "So I guess that means that you want to go away with me this weekend." He grinned, cheerfully, at her.

"Yes, I do, I have worked it out, so we can leave early on Friday. I am sure I can get Mr. Johnson to agree that I could leave work a little earlier. I have been working a lot of late evenings," Cristina said.

"Of course he will let you leave early," Owen said. Steve always had Owen's best interest at heart when it came to Cristina, so he knew he would allow her to do so.

"So where is this place?" Cristina asked.

"Oh, it is going to be a surprise. It's about an hour and a half outside of Seattle," Owen said. "I found it on the net."

"Okay, I am up for that," she said, chuckling.

Owen's romantic dinner certainly worked because he was rewarded a very active love-making session, later that night. She fell asleep in his arms, with her head resting on his chest. He kissed the top of her head.

"Mark my words, I am the right one for you," he said, softly. She murmured a bit and he gently pulled her closer. "I hope that murmuring was an agreement on your part."

* * *

><p>On Friday evening, he picked her up at her office. Their luggage for the weekend was already packed in the trunk of his car.<p>

"So Johnson gave you no problems about leaving early?" he asked, as she came into the car.

"No," she said. "He told me to have a good time." Owen had a word with Steve about his plans and Steve heartily agreed to let Cristina off early. Owen thanked him and promised Steve that he had nailed down the position of best man at the wedding. Steve had guffawed at the thought and said that if Owen was successful in making Cristina his fiancée, he would be more than honored to be his best man.

They started their drive southwards. "I hope that this place has some good food," Cristina said. "I am totally famished."

When they finally got to Brothers Bay Bed and Breakfast Inn, Owen, too, was hungry. He hoped that they were already serving dinner. The inn was beautiful and so was its surroundings. From the front of the inn, they could see the beach at the back of the inn. However, Owen noticed that there was some scaffolding on the side of the hotel. He hoped not what he thought it was.

They strolled into the lobby to find a rosy-cheeked older man at the front desk. "Good evening and welcome. I am Dr. Henry Lovett."

"Dr. Lovett, are you a medical doctor?" Owen asked.

"Yes, I am. Well, at least, I was. I was a orthopedic surgeon, working in Seattle. When I retired, my wife, Rowena wanted to open a bed and breakfast and here we are," Dr. Lovett said.

"I am a surgeon, too. Owen Hunt, trauma surgeon," Owen said, shaking the older man's hand. "I work at Seattle Grace."

"Really? That was my old hospital," Dr. Lovett said. "That is so wonderful that I get to meet a member of the new generation of surgeons."

"Where are my manners? This is my girlfriend, Cristina Yang," Owen said. Cristina shook Dr. Lovett's hand.

"Enchanted, young lady. My, you are a pretty one. My wife is going to envy your curls. She always wanted curly hair. So are you a surgeon, too?" Dr. Lovett asked.

"No, definitely not. I am a lawyer. I hate hospitals. I can't stand the smell," she said. "It is just so ironic that my boyfriend is a surgeon."

"Yes, it is," Dr. Lovett chuckled. "So are you two staying here for the entire weekend?"

"Yes," Owen said. "We're going to check out on Sunday evening and head back to Seattle."

"Good, good," Dr. Lovett said, checking his computer for Owen's reservations.

"Is the restaurant serving dinner as yet?" Owen asked. "We're both very hungry."

"Well, let's just get you quickly checked in, here," Dr. Lovett said. "Can I get your credit card for incidentals?"

After putting their bags in a beautiful room with a lovely view of the beach, they had a sumptuous supper, courtesy of Dr. Lovett's wife, Rowena. After supper, they went to their rooms and both promptly fell asleep. It was a long day of work and driving and both were exhausted.

* * *

><p>The next morning, Owen was awakened by a pounding in his head. No, that was wrong, he thought. The pounding wasn't coming from his own brain but from above him. He opened his eyes. Someone was pounding on the roof above him. His fears from yesterday were realized. They were doing repairs on the building. His idea of peace and relaxation for this weekend was totally shattered. He was mad. Why didn't someone tell him that they were doing repairs this weekend? He would have booked somewhere else or on a different weekend. He looked at Cristina, sleeping next to him. She was still dead to the world. This girl could sleep through anything, he thought.<p>

He felt the need to complain to Dr. Lovett. He brushed his teeth, took a quick shower and changed into a jeans and t-shirt. He hurried down to the front desk. Dr. Lovett gave him a cheery smile.

"Dr. Hunt, how are you this fine morning?" Dr. Lovett said. "Rowena has prepared a fine breakfast."

"I am not so good this morning, Dr. Lovett," Owen said. "I woke up with this pounding from the roof repairs that are going on just above my room."

"I am so sorry about that but we did put it in on our website that roof repairs were going to take place this weekend," Dr. Lovett said.

"Really?" Owen said. Somehow, he may have missed it. He could kick himself.

"Yes," Dr. Lovett said. "It's on our home page, near the bottom of the page. Maybe that is why you didn't see it. I will have to tell our webmaster about that. You do have the option of checking out, this morning."

"Are there any other….," Owen started but he was interrupted by yelling and screaming.

"Jonathan! Oh, my God, Jonathan!" they clearly heard someone scream.

Both Owen and Dr. Lovett rushed outside to see what was going on. When they got there, they were horrified to find one of the roofers had fallen to the ground. The other roofer, still on the roof, was screaming. "Help him, please!"

"Okay, Louis," Dr. Lovett said. Both Owen and Dr. Lovett's medical training kicked in. They started checking Jonathan. He was still alive but Owen observed blood coming from Jonathan's mouth.

"Looks like he has some internal bleeding. He probably needs surgery," Owen said.

"And he has broken bones. We need to get him to our local health facility," Dr. Lovett said. "He needs surgery but we don't have surgeons here. Are you up to help me operate?"

"Yes," Owen said, immediately. They carefully put Jonathan on the tray of Dr. Lovett's truck.

Dr. Lovett called out to Louis, who had come down from the roof. "Please tell Rowena that we are on the way to the health facility and tell her to inform the young lady where we have gone."

"Sure thing, Dr. Lovett," Louis said. "I will meet you all up at the facility." He ran into the inn. Owen and Dr. Lovett were on their way.

By the time they got back to the inn, it was already after 6.30 in the evening. They had a trying time, operating on Jonathan but they got through it and waited for him to stabilize, before they left him in the care of the nursing staff at the facility.

The first thing Owen wanted to do was look for Cristina. He wondered if she would be out at the beach, so he went to take a look. He was right. She was sitting on a blanket, staring at the Pacific Ocean. Her unmistakeable curls were being blown by the wind. He walked out to where she was and sat behind her.

She knew, immediately who it was. She leaned back against his chest. "How is he?" she asked.

"It was tough going for a while but he pulled through," Owen said.

"Ah, that's good," she said. "Good thing both you and Dr. Lovett are surgeons. He was extremely fortunate."

"Yeah, Lovett took care of his bones while I did the internal repairs," he said. He softly kissed her cheek. "I am sorry."

"About what? It's not your fault," she said, looking up at him.

"This is not the way that I had envisioned how this weekend was going to go," he said. "I wanted a quiet weekend, just to relax with you. I wanted to walk on the beach, enjoy some good food and make love to you. I wanted to prove that….."

"Prove what?" she asked, in a puzzled tone. Her eyebrows knitted together as she was confused.

"I wanted to prove I am the right one for you," he said, quietly.

"The right one for me? What are you talking about?" Then, it dawned on her. "Oh, gosh, Mr. Johnson. That weird conversation he had with me. He was asking me about whether I wanted to get married, settle down and have a family. I remember I told him that it will happen, when I know I am with the right one. He told you that, didn't he?" Owen nodded, sheepishly.

"That Mr. Johnson has to stop sticking in his nose in my personal business," Cristina said, a little peeved at her boss.

"Don't be so mad at him," Owen said. "He wants me to be happy and he knows that you do that for me."

She turned around to face him. "Owen, when I gave Mr. Johnson that answer, it was just the usual answer I usually give everybody whenever they ask me about when I plan to settle down. It wasn't about you."

"Really?" he said, surprised.

"Yes, I am not really the kind to discuss my personal business with Mr. Johnson but he clearly wants to ask me about it," she said.

They were silent for a bit. "Well, I am going to ask you, now. Am I the right one?" he said. She looked at him with a smile.

"Yes, you're the right one. Deep down inside, I have always known this," she said. She took his face into her hands and kissed him, as the sun set over the horizon.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. I enjoy reading what you think and it helps in the writing process. Thanks.**


	26. Chapter 26 Proposal

_**A/N: FINAL CHAPTER**_

It was now a couple of months since their visit to the bed and breakfast inn, where she had finally told him that he was "the right one." There had been a lot of changes, since then.

First of all, Owen and Cristina were now living under the same roof. It occurred to them that it didn't make sense to have two places, since Owen was already spending most of his time at Cristina's house, anyway and the vast majority of his clothes had made their way into her closet. So he sold his apartment to another doctor at the hospital and moved in to her place. There weren't really any adjustment problems, since they were practically living with each other, already.

He wondered if it was now the right time to make their living arrangement legal. He wanted to propose to her. After their trip to the bed and breakfast, he had found himself at a fine jeweler's store and chosen a beautiful with a 3.5 carat emerald-cut diamond. He was just waiting for the right time to propose and he felt that time was drawing near.

He looked at her from across the kitchen table and smiled. She caught him looking at her. "Hey, you're smiling at me," she smiled back at him.

"Well, I was just thinking about how much I love you," he said.

"I love you, too, honey," she said. "Speaking of love, do you know that on Wednesday, it will be two years since we met. I mean, we've been together for two years, minus the seven months apart but we're just going to ignore that."

"Yeah, I don't count those seven months apart, too," he said. "We were still thinking about each other, so we were still together in spirit."

"Ooh, that is a lovely way to look at it," she said. "Well, I was thinking to celebrate our second anniversary, let's go to Tulio's on Wednesday. I will make the reservations. We can go after work. I will change my clothes at work and you can carry a suit to work and we will just meet up there."

"Yes, that sounds great. Maybe around seven," he said.

"Yes, seven is just about perfect," she said, giving him a huge smile. The wheels started turning in Owen's head. This anniversary date at Tulio's was the perfect time to pop the question, he thought. It was working out so well.

"Yes," he said, returning a smile. He was going to make her his wife. They finished up their breakfast and headed out to work.

* * *

><p>Later that day, he met Steve for their lunchtime workout. Steve found that Owen seemed cheerier than usual. He was always happy since things had worked out Cristina but today, he seemed even more overjoyed.<p>

"What's up, buddy?" Steve asked.

"I am going to do it," Owen replied. "I am going to ask Cristina to marry me. I have the ring and now, I have the opportunity."

"The opportunity? What do you mean?" Steve said, as he got on the cycle, next to Owen.

"Well, it seems that Wednesday is our second year anniversary from the day we met at Tulio's. So we are going back to the restaurant to celebrate. It is the perfect time," Owen said. "Plus we will both be dressed up. Ooh, that reminds me I have to get her some flowers."

"Well, good for you, Owen. I hope everything goes well for you," Steve said.

"Hey, I haven't forgotten you're going to be the best man," Owen said. "You've supported me throughout this relationship, even when I was acting like an idiot."

"Yeah, I remember. I am looking forward to being best man," Steve said. "And I will always support you. You're my best friend and I know that she makes you happy."

"Yes, she does. I can't imagine my life without her," Owen said. Steve gave him a pat on his back.

* * *

><p>On Wednesday, Owen was more than excited. He had brought in his suit with him to work. "Big night on the town, Hunt?" one of his colleagues, Dr Saunders, remarked.<p>

"Yup, very big night. Going to ask my girlfriend to marry me," Owen said.

"Ah, good man. Congratulations," Saunders said. "I guess when I see you tomorrow, you will be an engaged man."

"I definitely hope so," Owen said. There were a lot of injuries that came in the ER, that day and for the first time in his working life, he kept looking at the clock. Owen hoped that he would be able to leave by 6.30 to make it to the restaurant for seven. He hoped and prayed that no one would get in an accident before then. He took a shower, dressed in his suit and put the small box into his pocket. He headed out to his car and drove to Tulio's. He parked, took out the roses from the back seat and headed to the Tulio's entrance. He was flabbergasted to read a sign at the entrance which read, "Closed for Private Function."

"No, no, no," he said, aloud and to no one in particular. "This cannot be happening." Cristina had told him that very morning that she had confirmed their reservations at the restaurant. What could this private function be all about? He was still contemplating what to do, when the door opened and the manager of the restaurant looked out.

"Ah, Mr. Hunt, come right this way," the manager said.

"Um, it says there is a private function," Owen said, puzzled that the manager was telling him to go inside.

"Yes, it is your private function," the manager said. "Right this way." Owen followed the man into the main dining area. The place was decorated in flowers and lights and in the center of it all, was an arch, covered with lilies.

"What's going on here?" he said. He looked around and seated at the tables, were some of his colleagues from work and members of his family and some other people he did not know.

"Hey, Owen, you made it in time," said a familiar voice. Owen looked around and saw Steve, all dressed up in a dark suit.

"Steve, what's going on here?" Owen asked. "I see my mom and my cousins, some folks from work."

"You're getting married," Steve said. "Cristina set it up."

"Wha—at?" Owen said. His mouth dropped open. Was this really happening?

"Let's just take these flowers," Steve said, handing them to the manager. "You can give those to her, later. Let's just get in our places." He guided his dazed friend to the wedding arch, where the clergyman was already standing. "By the way, Owen, this is Reverend Olson, he will be officiating."

"Pleased to meet you, Mr. Hunt," Reverend Olson said.

"Yes," Owen said. Then, the music started. Everyone got up as Terry first entered, then Cristina and an older Asian man, whom Owen surmised was her dad. She was dressed in a beautiful, white mermaid dress which was fitted, then flared out from the knees. A single tear rolled down his cheek, as he saw her. She looked so stunning. It was really happening; they were getting married.

As her father handed her over to Owen, the two men nodded. It was strange but he had never met Cristina's parents before. She had met his mom, a couple of times, but he had never had the privilege of meeting her parents.

He whispered to her, "You look beautiful. Baby, we have to talk, when this is over."

"Of course," she said. "Let's just get married, now." She chuckled a little bit.

The reverend cleared his throat, before he started, "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the joining of …." The vows were traditional because it wasn't like if Owen had a chance to write his own vows.

When Reverend Olson asked for the rings, Owen panicked. He didn't have a wedding ring on him. Steve said, "ahem" to get Owen's attention and handed him the ring. Toni handed Cristina the ring for Owen. They placed the rings on each other's left finger. His ring, he noted, was a perfect fit. It was apparent that Cristina had thought of everything when she had planned this. He was just totally amazed by how she was able to pull this off.

"You may now kiss the bride," Reverend Olson said. Owen took Cristina's face in his hands and gave her three soft kisses.

"I now present Mr. and Mrs. Owen Hunt," the reverend declared. Everyone in the restaurant broke out in spontaneous applause.

"We're married, Owen," Cristina said, with a smile.

"Yes, we are," he said, grinning. This day had ended better than he had even planned.

After all the formal ceremony and speeches were over and everyone sat down for dinner, Owen looked at his bride. "How did you do this?"

"Well, actually, it was a collaboration of several parties," she admitted. "The manager of the restaurant handled all of the catering and the decorations and the music. Terry and I handled my guests, while Steve took care of inviting your guests. He called your mom, your family and your colleagues at the hospital."

"Steve? He was behind it, too," Owen was flabbergasted. He waved at his friend, who was with his wife at another table. Steve waved back. "I saw him, today and he said nothing. Two days ago, I told him I was going to propose to you and he said nothing, then, either."

"Propose? You were going to propose?" Cristina said.

"Yes, actually, I was going to propose tonight on our anniversary. But I guess it is now all moot," he said.

"So that means you have a diamond ring on you?" she asked, slyly.

"Of course," he said. "I might as well give it to you, since it is yours." He dug into his pocket and pulled out the black box and handed it to her. She opened it and gasped. "Wow, Owen, it is beautiful.""

"Not as beautiful as the person, who is going to be wearing it," he said. "Put it on, it will go well with your wedding ring." She slipped the ring on to her ring finger just above the wedding ring. She stared at it, admiring it for a while.

"Why did you do it?" he asked. "Set up the wedding. Just a few months ago, you didn't want to hear about getting married."

"I think it was our trip to the bed and breakfast inn," she said. "Remember when I told you that you were the right one."

"Yes, how could I forget that; that was one of the best days of my life. Of course, today tops that but it was one of the most wonderful days of my life," he said.

"It got me thinking," Cristina said. "Why waste another moment when we could be with each other for the rest of our lives? The idea started formulating in the brain that our anniversary would be the perfect wedding date. Then, it would really become our real anniversary."

"Gosh, you are amazing," he said. "I am so happy that you are my wife."

"Oh, I am pleased that you are pleased," she laughed. "It's just as well, seeing that we're going to be parents."

"Parents? We're going to be parents!" he yelled.

"Not so loud, Owen, I haven't told anybody as yet. Yes, I found out three days, ago. I took one of those home tests on Sunday. I worked out my cycle and I think I am two months pregnant. I made an appointment at the doctor's for Friday. I thought you would like to come," she said, softly.

"Of course. Hey, if we are going to the doctor's office on Friday, when is our honeymoon?" he asked.

"On Saturday, we leave for the Maldives. It's all been arranged with the hospital and with my firm for us to get two weeks off. I thought it would be better if we go to the doctor's first, before we head off on our honeymoon," she said.

"Good thinking, Mrs. Hunt. You are a very smart woman. One of the reasons I married you," he said. He gave her a soft kiss on her lips.

* * *

><p>Seven months later, the Hunts went into the hospital, with Cristina screaming and cursing. They emerged from the hospital, a day later with their new baby girl, a dark-haired, dark-eyed bundle of joy, whom they called Rhiannon because her dad was a Stevie Nicks fan.<p>

_**THE END**_

* * *

><p><strong>AN Please leave your comments. I hope you enjoyed this story. Please let me have your thoughts about the end of this story.**


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